


Whiteout

by LuckyBullet



Category: RWBY
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe, F/F, Original Characters - Freeform, Relationships To Be Added As/If They Appear
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-11-27
Updated: 2015-01-12
Packaged: 2018-02-27 06:27:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 23,917
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2682539
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LuckyBullet/pseuds/LuckyBullet
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ruby accomplished her dreams. Weiss never got the chance to chase hers. Blake's dreams are of a darker nature. And Yang's rob her of sleep. The White Fang have made their next move, taking Weiss Schnee hostage and demanding her father sign over the company. But when the Schnee patriarch hires Ruby and Yang to save his daughter instead, four fates inevitably intertwine... (AU)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Trigger Pull

**Author's Note:**

> So it's been a while since I've posted and I'll have an update on my fanfiction.net profile as to why all that is. But I'm back with a new story obviously. The first five chapters are already complete and updates will be weekly. This is an AU set after Beacon. Blake never left the White Fang, Weiss never got to attend Beacon and, as part of an experimental year, Ruby and Yang ended up on a three person team with Pyrrha with Jaune, Nora and Ren coming together similarly. There will be a couple of OCs in this story in secondary antagonist roles. They won't be too big a focus but they will be of some importance to the story. Lastly, big thanks to SAmaster01, Veloran and Bainbow for beta reading this story. Their input has been instrumental to the first five chapters and is greatly appreciated. All that said I hope you enjoy.

As successful and advanced a kingdom Atlas was, it was remarkably monotone. The vast majority of buildings they passed by were generic industrial factories and emergency service stations, each made even less distinct by near identical blankets of snow disguising what unique features they might have held. Every residential home in the lower class district they had just passed through seemed to be based on the same foundation, the near perpetual cold making brick and cement the go-to building material. And every shop was exactly the same, making it seem as if a few exceptionally profitable store chains ensured they had a store within walking distance of every street, which actually was pretty much the case.

This monotony meant that Weiss Schnee was incapable of distracting herself from her thoughts. And so there she was, in the middle seat of an armoured Schnee company car. On her right sat a guard she was trying to see round to look out at her drab home kingdom, and on her left another guard, this one large enough that Weiss hadn't even bothered attempting to look past him. In the passenger seat sat her personally assigned escort, Adrian Chambers. And in the driver's seat, yet another guard…

Together they were travelling down empty back roads and quiet streets as they made their way to the hospital her father was currently staying in. Her insides were knotted; she hadn't seen her father since his admittance, and she had no idea what awaited her when she finally laid eyes upon him. Well she knew enough about her father to reason that what awaited her was probably bad, she'd still be practically imprisoned in Castle White otherwise.

It didn't take too much longer for the car to come to a halt, a literal squadron of mechs flanking the soldiers that approached the vehicle. Stepping out of the car, she met them halfway, feeling dwarfed by what towered above her. It was a monument to just how beneficial being amongst the upper caste in Atlas could be, a fortified hospital surrounded on all four sides by barbed fencing. It looked more like a military outpost than a health facility.

 _Of course my father would admit himself into the highest security medical facility in existence_ and _hire a huntsman to watch over him, but let his pawn of a daughter travel with a meagre four guards…_ the heiress mused viciously but nevertheless followed "proper etiquette". Spine straight, head held high, tone only going beyond polite when the situations calls for intimidation, and emotions never going beyond professional.

"Ms. Schnee, you are here to visit your father, correct?" questioned a man in a grey suit, the only one amongst the soldiers wearing a badge that identified him as a doctor.

"Indeed I am." Weiss replied curtly and the doctor's head bowed, the atmosphere somehow dampening. Weiss narrowed her eyes; she knew it was bad news... "What's wrong?"

"My name is Doctor Albion Bosworth. I am the doctor responsible for treating your father. I'm sorry to have to tell you this…" He took a deep breath and looked back up, his eyes full of sympathy. "Mr. Schnee's hepatocellular carcinoma recently took a turn for the worse…"

Weiss' world stopped, her brain exploding in thought as she desperately tried to rationalise and justify. She was in shock, so much so that she didn't hear Albion tell Adrian that her father would likely die within the month. And that shock was born of the three words that had flashed through her mind the moment the news left Albion's lips…

" _About damn time…"_

It was no secret to Weiss herself that she wished death upon her father almost daily, but she always thought it a coping mechanism, passive aggression… She never believed for a second that she would be _relieved_ and _grateful_ to hear the news of her father's impending demise. She was suddenly torn from her thoughts by a hand on her shoulder. She turned to look at the source of contact, her personal guard.

"Ms. Schnee, are you okay?" His voice wasn't warm or comforting; it was professional, just the way her father had ordered…

"Fine!" she spat, jerking her body to break away from the hand. "I'd like to go home now…"

Adrian nodded at the girl who was already strutting her way back towards the car. Turning to Albion, he saw the doctor watching the heiress walk away, pitying her. He gave a second nod, one of respect and goodbye, before turning on his heel and following the young woman. He opened the door for her, and she hesitated.

"Could I have the window seat?" she asked, her voice low, weak… lifeless. He gave her a once over before clearing his throat.

"Of course, Ms Schnee."

* * *

The snow had let up, that was both a blessing and a curse to Kiera. Whilst it most certainly would make the impending mission much easier, she had actually been losing herself in the scene that had been outside her window for the length of… She checked her packet. She had one cigarette left. That meant she'd puffed away nine of the toxic things over the last few hours. She was perfectly fine with that fact; something was going to kill her eventually anyways so she reasoned she might as well make that "something" something pleasurable.

Were one to look at her, they'd likely claim she was stressed. And that her sitting on her window sill, knees curled up to her chest, smoking away as she admired the outside world was a desperate attempt to calm herself before the mission began.

And they'd be wrong.

Kiera contrarily had rarely ever been calmer. In fact, if anything, she was excited. Because today the White Fang finally began to truly ascend from the shadows, finally strived for true supremacy, finally gifted her, and all those Humanity had also wronged, the vengeance they desired. And the key to all of that was the girl in the car: Weiss Schnee.

The order itself came from Ivan Sabre, a member of the Triumvirate that had taken control of the White Fang twelve years ago and veered them towards more successful methods of gaining Humanity's attention. He told them to capture the heiress alive, and kill every last witness, leaving no trace. Or at least no trace that Lutolf himself wouldn't cover up to hide his daughter's kidnapping from the world.

It would be herself, Nightshade, Elysium and Taurus on this mission, the best four operatives that the White Fang had to offer. Nightshade, whom Ivan had always been most fond of, would be the one responsible for apprehending Weiss Schnee. She absolutely could not fail and Kiera had all the faith in the world that she wouldn't. Nightshade was her student after all...

She took another drag of her cigarette, finding bliss in the draw, and okay she had to admit there was a certain relaxing quality. Then there was a steady rasp on the door and Kiera smiled before blowing out the smoke, dabbing out her cigarette and flitting over towards it gracefully, unlocking it.

A familiar face greeted her with long flowing red hair, grey eyes, a pale complexion and two horns protruding from the top of her head. She grinned at the welcome sight. "Eli!" she greeted joyously, taking a moment to marvel at her dragoon's statuesque appearance and she felt the redhead's eyes roam her own petite body, built for guerrilla warfare and speed, as opposed to direct combat and strength.

Eli's eyes journeyed up the mess of colour that Kiera's tattoo sleeve had become after she immortalised one too many sins in ink on her skin. They lingered for a moment on the smaller woman's left shoulder before continuing upwards over short, white-streaked black hair, punctuated by white-tipped black fox ears, and finally meeting a twinkling emerald gaze. She smiled.

"Come on Kiera. It's almost time…" she finally spoke warmly, offering her hand to the fox Faunus. Kiera took it without hesitation and felt a playful tug pull her out of her home and into the cold night…

* * *

The journey back was tense, pensive and sullen. Weiss watched the world go by and lost herself in thought, so desperate to explain her sudden muse back at the hospital. She tried to say it was in jest, just more passive aggression. That she didn't mean it, that she _did_ care about her father, and that she _would_ cry at his funeral. But it wasn't difficult for Weiss to admit that she was lying to herself when she said those things.

And that was what scared her most. She truly didn't care. There wasn't an ounce of worry, a single tear of sorrow, an iota of sympathy. Her father was _dying_ , and she was _glad_. He had stripped her dream from her, forcing her into a life of reclusion. He had beaten and cursed at her. And when she did find happiness, when she did find a sliver of freedom and comfort, he took that away too…

Lutolf was a monster in life and she had absolutely no doubt that he would be a monster in death.

"Is everything alright Ms. Schnee?" enquired Adrian apathetically.

As her personal guard, he arguably, tragically, knew Weiss better than anyone, so it actually came as no surprise to Weiss that he had noticed her withdrawal. Not that her aloofness was anything new, she just tended to actually try to disguise her body language. Something she was failing at presently…

"Oh yes Adrian, I am wonderful!" she fired back, venomous and snarkily, catching him by surprise as she betrayed her learned professionalism. "You know, this morning, I felt depressed and was plotting to kill my father but now that I know his lifetime of drinking's going to do it for me? I couldn't be happier!" She emphasised her point with a fake smile, one perfected after 23 years pretending everything was perfect. It dropped to a scowl shortly thereafter.

"Ms. Schnee, your father-"

"My father demands that you deliver me home safe and sound and make sure I do not end up like my sister. Now please, just leave me to my thoughts and do your job!" She turned her gaze back towards the scenery, the self-loathing seeping in. The guardsmen didn't deserve her fury…

She briefly caught her reflection in the window, immediately cringing away from the sight of her hair cascading down both shoulders, disgusted by the symmetry. She began to wonder why her father never sliced open her other eye…

* * *

Tyrannical, sociopathic, egotistical, cruel; these were all words that could describe Lutolf Schnee. They had been the reasons for every crime she had committed against the SDC and they would be her reasons for what she was going to do tonight, for tearing away a feeble old man's last remaining loved one. Whether that was reason enough... she'd find out in time.

Amber eyes glanced down at the gin in her hand. She wasn't much of a drinker, having barely finished a single actual bottle in her entire life. But there was something about spirits, rum and gin in particular, that always brought her back to the matter at hand, the bitter burn in her stomach corroding away all distractions along with her liver. She removed the cap and took a large gulp, her only reaction to the toxic liquid as it shot down her throat being a muscle twitch in her cheek.

"Adam requests your presence immediately, Nightshade..." The voice behind her was an unwelcome intruder, though the same could be said for almost everyone in this world.

"Good," she took another swig of her gin before finally turning, and the pair of intruders lowered their heads, avoiding their superior's gaze. "Get set up," she spoke with authority. "We won't need you for more than spotting, but the Triumvirate insists on a contingency against the worst case."

 _A contingency in case I fail them…_ she inwardly acknowledged before strolling past the duo, a sensual swing in her hips that came effortlessly. She never looked at her subordinates and merely thrust the bottle into one of their hands. "And do keep that safe for me…"

* * *

Arriving at a small clearing, their rendezvous point, Nightshade's eyes immediately fell upon two of the few people who meant anything to her:

Kiera, codename "D'blanco", a fox Faunus that had taught Nightshade everything she had needed to know, giving her the weapons she needed to strike back against humanity. And Eli, codename "Elysium", a ewe Faunus whom had endured years of brutal training with Kiera and had long since bonded with her on levels Nightshade couldn't even imagine. Presently they were a half a clearing away from her partner, Kiera pressed against a tree by Eli.

She rolled her eyes as she approached Adam, long since accustomed to Eli and Kiera's… public displays of affection... Adam glanced to his right, the corner of his mouth curving up into a half-smile at the sight of his partner. "You ready?" he asked, receiving a short pause from the girl as she exhaled.

"Yes…" she replied, the clear strain in her voice causing Adam's smile to fade.

"You don't have to-"

"Yes Adam, I do…" she intercepted coldly and sharply before glancing toward a desolate corner of the clearing. She spoke again, not returning her gaze to her partner. "Call me over when it's time…"

Adam watched his partner walk away. Her voice was always so soft and fragile; the decade of war she'd been waging never fully stripping her of the ability to mourn her enemies. He appreciated that, humanity had robbed him of his ability to mourn and regret long ago. Now, everything justified everything else in his eyes.

The next several minutes passed by in unremarkable stasis. Eli and Kiera continued to chatter idly at the far end of the clearing, knowing better than to try to talk with the isolated girl they had spent fifteen years caring for. Nightshade spent her time seated on the grass, gaze turned skyward towards the stars. And Adam watched his scroll, waiting for the go ahead from Overwatch. And sure enough it came.

Nightshade heard him coming before he arrived, but kept stargazing until she heard her name. "Blake…" Adam called. "It's time…"

Blake nodded. Her expression hardened but her voice remained soft. "Okay…"

Seeing Adam and Blake making their way over towards them was all the confirmation the two other female assassins needed to break apart from their light-hearted banter. Kiera's eyes met Blake's and she gave a small smile which the feline returned. Adam felt a small pang in his chest, unable to remember when he had last seen such a genuine, affectionate smile turned towards him. It seemed reserved for Kiera and Kiera alone these days…

Sensing the tension in Adam, Eli stepped forward. "So we ready?" All eyes turned to her and three heads nodded. She reached for her double ended spear, the weapon resting lazily against a tree and readied herself in a throwing stance, placing her oxygen mask over her face.

"Don't miss," spoke Adam as Eli crouched down before leaping to the skies, not offering him a response. Three heads turned upwards as she ascended to inhuman heights, eyes darting around wildly before she finally saw it: An armoured black car making its way down a barren road.

"She doesn't miss…" replied Kiera with a glint of pride. Eli corkscrewed in the air, bringing herself to an upright stance and drew back her arm, her tiny supply of oxygen beginning to funnel into her lungs in lieu of a thicker atmosphere. She threw her hand forwards, releasing her spear and watched on as a small burst of fire from the base propelled Eldritch Blitz, her weapon of choice, downwards. It crashed perfectly into the centre of the road, mere feet ahead of the vehicle. "Told ya…"

Eli landed several feet away from where she had taken off, her Aura absorbing the typical impact with ease though Kiera couldn't help but flinch. The redhead took a few moments to catch her breath, Kiera steadily moving over to check on her, with confirmation she was fine, the fox Faunus turned to Adam and Blake. "Let's move…"

* * *

Weiss' musings were brought to an end by the sound of Dust igniting in the distance. She heard Eldritch Blitz fire but it was too late, it always was...

The spear struck into the concrete of the road and the driver swerved wildly, narrowly avoiding the new object. The car banked to the right as it swerved, two wheels briefly leaving the ground. Already off-balance, the car continued to tip, rolling over onto its side with a loud smash before continuing its journey, momentum forcing several more rolls, Weiss being bashed about viciously in her seat.

When the car finally stilled, upside down, the guardsmen were dazed and confused but absent wounds and Weiss' head had pounded against the window cracking it slightly. They had all survived absent any blood being drawn other than what remained on Weiss' head after her Aura sealed up one laceration. "Ms. Schnee, can you hear me?" called a powerful, authoritative voice. "Ms. Schnee!" It shouted again trying to bring Weiss' attention to the matter at hand.

Her vision stopped blurring and she glanced around, noting how she was staring down at the roof of her transport vehicle, held securely in place by her seatbelt which had locked up during the crash. "Brace yourself." The voice warned before a brief tear was heard and the support of the seatbelt vanished causing Weiss to fall against the roof. "Kick out that window and climb out."

Wasting no time in arguing, Weiss pushed out her foot, heeled boot slamming into the weakened glass with a crunch, the cracks grew but the window held. She pulled her leg back up to near her body before thrusting it back out, yet again exacerbating the crack but not succeeding in shattering the reinforced glass. One last kick and it finally gave in, exploding outwards.

Awkwardly contorting her body, mindful of the escorts still trapped inside, Weiss set about crawling out of the wreckage. Panic set in when she was half-way out. She heard a sick crack, followed by a crunch, and a squelch. Something was happening and she couldn't see it, she could just hear the agonised screams, or the muffled gargles of people dying.

Hauling herself the rest of the way out of the car, Weiss turned to try to see something, anything, and caught a glimpse of a flame-bladed dagger as it slashed the jugular of Adrian. His blood froze over instantly and he fell limply to the ground. That was when emerald met azure...

Myrtenaster slid out from the car and Weiss clutched it desperately. "RUN!" a guard, presumably the one who slid over her rapier, called out as the fox Faunus sheathed her dagger and drew a hand cannon with a thin blue neon light spanning the length of the barrel. The girl took aim and pulled the trigger, Weiss narrowly escaping the bullet which exploded into a small chunk of ice, freezing over a section of the door panel.

Scrambling to her feet, Weiss took off at a run. "Blake!" called Kiera and the cat Faunus took off at a sprint after the heiress.

* * *

Weiss finally came to a stop near a secluded warehouse, swiftly realising that she had no idea exactly where she was. The sound of a gunshot rang out and she jumped, unaware of the kama now anchored to one corner of the warehouse.

Black skittered past her vision, the heiress' head jerking to the left to follow the movement. Her attention was drawn to the rooftop by the sound of the kama being pulled free and Blake took the opportunity to strike. Pulling on the ribbon of her weapon, she brought her kama to Weiss' face cutting across the distracted heiress' cheek, staggering her. Blake threw out her hand and a very life-like clone of herself dashed towards the heiress, tackling her to the ground before dissipating.

Weiss coughed and looked up at her adversary, a cat Faunus now wielding a katana. Blake reached back and wrapped her hand around the grip of a cleaver and drew that also. Weiss was alone, lost, cornered, and being attacked by a Faunus. She had no choice but to fight. The wound on her cheek healed up quickly as her low reserves of Aura went to work and she stumbled to her feet, her grip on Myrtenaster's hilt one of iron. Coming back to a stable base her expression hardened. She had to fight. She had to win. She had to…

Blake remained cool, calm and collected, lifting her blades and meeting the fiery ice of her mark's eyes. They were beautiful in that moment, such little things were never lost on the cat Faunus and she was grateful that she wasn't tasked with killing her. Robbing someone seemingly so innocent of life… Her right thigh twitched.

Her opponent glided forward, a series of white glyphs marking a path towards the White Fang assassin. Blake raised her two swords defensively, readying her blades in a cross formation to catch the rapier. The stab never came, instead the porcelain princess vaulted over her, a blur of white being all Blake's vision could pick up. She spun on the spot and Weiss growled inwardly, the opening still not there.

She continued to use her speed, now appearing behind her again but the two were a perfect match. Every elegant acrobatic manoeuvre of Weiss' was being perfectly countered with liquid smooth, barely noticeable movements, Weiss dancing around a lightning fast Blake.

Physical manifestations of shadow had begun leaking from the onyx-haired girl, making it near impossible for Weiss to tell which she should be targeting. The one time she dared attempt a strike, Myrtenaster cut through a shadow clone. It felt like she was piercing flesh, and it made her stomach churn.

Just as Weiss was about to surrender her onslaught against the girl that was exuding confidence despite being on the defensive, she felt a shift in dynamic. Suddenly she was actually observing her enemy's reactions, seeing the crane of Blake's head as she traced Weiss' movements, hearing the tap of Blake's foot as it contacted the ground not even a second after hers. Blake was falling behind; she was actually gaining the advantage.

Nightshade tried to remain calm, infuriation setting in at the thought of the girl somehow being a step ahead of her. Every time her defense perfectly matched her opponent's offense, the attack never came, the girl instead reappearing from another flank forcing Blake to swap her stance and position.

She had prayed Weiss would tire but she had remarkable stamina. In fact she barely appeared exhausted by the excessive effort she had to be placing in to move so quickly absent a speed related semblance. It didn't help that she had missed her chance. Weiss eventually proved foolish enough to strike and met a shadow clone. She had left herself vulnerable but Blake was facing away from the girl and couldn't capitalise that instant.

Falling behind, Blake bided her time, feet shuffling around to bring her face to face with Weiss whom yet again refused a poke. The heiress moved again appearing behind Blake and the Faunus activated her semblance. Her movements matched that of her shadow clone and yet she herself never fully turned.

Weiss, seeing the clone as the girl herself, whipped round to its back, Blake's front, and the Faunus leapt backward, pushing herself off of her own clone and landing nimbly some three metres away. Weiss cut down the shadow figure, nausea again creeping in, before realising her mistake.

Blake closed the distance instantaneously, another replica appearing where her body once stood. Weiss' eyes widened as the girl slashed forward, cleaver arcing through the air and clashing with Myrtenaster in a shower of sparks. The Faunus brought her katana down in a sweeping arc and Myrtenaster whipped from the parried cleaver to clang against the smaller sword.

Blake activated her semblance and soon appeared behind Weiss, the heiress pirouetted just in time to knock away the katana. The cleaver slice glanced off of a white protection glyph and the more experienced fighter grimaced before once again pseudo-teleporting around the heiress.

Soon, Weiss was being surrounded by a whirlwind of black, the girl in the centre seemingly a beacon in the dark fog. It was a parallel to their previous exchange, Weiss' subtle movements were in her wrists and Blake was actively attacking, repeatedly and frustratingly meeting glyph after glyph with the occasional desperate guard stance resulting in a black blade meeting a silver one.

Somewhere in the chaos, Weiss had predicted one of Blake's moves perfectly, a pre-conjured sigil rebounding the operative's sword. Weiss caught the hilt of her rapier and pulled the trigger, the silver being bathed in a luminous red aura. Blake was already committed to her next attack and realised her blunder all too late.

Black impacted with red, the energy emanating from the sword pulsed, and the sheer force of the blow blasted the cat back, the feather-light girl hurtling through the air before crashing into the warehouse wall, her vision darkening but the lights never completely going out. She fell to the floor immediately after with a groan. Her entire being ached, pain lancing through seemingly every bone, muscle and organ. If it hadn't been for her aura, she may just have been killed by that impact.

Hearing her attempted captor's cry of agony, Weiss swiftly concluded that she couldn't give up her current advantage. Mode set to light blue, she twirled on the spot, stabbing Myrtenaster into the ground and sending an ice glacier careening towards the still reeling Faunus.

The crash of the ice erupting from the ground snapped Blake out of her reverie, bringing her back to the task at hand. Not yet shaking cobwebs from her head, Blake instinctively rolled to safety, her body screaming at her for it. The ice slammed against the wall she had previously nearly smashed straight through, freezing over the fractured concrete.

Coming up to a stable base, Blake took the second she had been given by Weiss repeating the attack to recompose herself before dodging again. This time, when inertia brought her back to her feet she pushed from the ground and dashed forward, adrenaline helping to dull the agonising sensation of pushing strained muscles past their limits.

Weiss remained calm despite her surprise; she was actually winning this fight after all. Lifting Myrtenaster up, she conjured several orbs of ice and in the same motion jerked her wrist forward, commanding the orbs to attack.

The hiss in the air as the spheroids homed in on her didn't go unnoticed by the Faunus; in fact she was relying on it to direct her next move. At the last possible second, she hopped to the right, a shadow clone being reduced back to a dark fog by the first barrage. Weiss geared up for a second, and Blake this time contorted her body to let the crystal spheres flutter by her before taking a leap forward, causing them to slam into yet another amalgamation of darkness.

Weiss backed up slightly and launched forward a collection of white snowflakes, hoping the quicker and more precise bindings would actually find their target. Yet again however, Blake evaded flawlessly, her Semblance offering her the perfect defense against Weiss' seeker projectiles. The glyphs bound the arms and legs of the clone which dissipated immediately after and, soon enough, Blake had the distance covered. Weiss quickly changed the mode of her signature weapon and the exchange began, pain still racking Blake's body.

An overhead cleaver slice at Weiss' shoulder was blocked by the porcelain beauty's rapier, and a horizontal slash aimed between collarbone and breast was ducked beneath effortlessly. Weiss' fingertips pressed lightly to the ground and a glyph appeared, launching her into the air. She lashed out with Myrtenaster, attempting an upper cut which met crossed blades but nevertheless stole Blake of her balance.

Weiss landed and, seeing Blake's broken guard, propelled herself forward. The high pitched metronome accompanying Weiss' charge gave the black beast the heads up and wherewithal she needed to roll to the side. Myrtenaster lacerated her tricep and she shrieked at the skin being carved away, dropping her cleaver.

Her roll kept her alive however, and brought her back to a crouching position allowing her to groggily push herself to her feet. Weiss closed the gap and brought Myrtenaster purposefully toward the remaining half of Gambol Shroud. Blake, not realising the significance of the yellow hue emitting from Myrtenaster gladly took the easy parry but soon found herself disarmed, Weiss' agility overwhelming her. The Heiress was good. Real good.

Having exposed her attacker, leaving her defenceless and therefore vulnerable, Weiss went for the killing blow, thrusting Myrtenaster forward. Blake managed to bend her knees and drop her hips, once more Myrtenaster tearing away skin, this time from her left shoulder, but not managing to skewer Blake outright.

Her weak and pained left arm raised, hand clasping around the sharp blade and Weiss widened her eyes. The girl she was facing was stronger than her, she couldn't wrest her weapon away. Blake growled through the pain as she let the sword carve into her hand and lunged forward, throwing out her elbow.

Whilst she was too far away to hit Weiss, the heiress wasn't expecting a shadow clone to be conjured carrying Blake's momentum, crashing into her before immediately disintegrating. The blow knocked Weiss back, Myrtenaster leaving her grasp and she brought a hand to her already bruising cheek.

Not letting her last chance go to waste, Blake threw Myrtenaster to the side before pulling herself up and delivering a chamber kick. Though Weiss wasn't within her reach, she still felt the full brunt of the boot, a shadow clone poofing into existence to deliver it for the dark-themed girl. Weiss coughed instinctually and keeled over, clutching her stomach.

Blake had immediately fallen to her hands and knees but, upon seeing Weiss' vulnerability, she willed her body to work. One last strike was all she needed. One more burst of energy. Her brain listened, flooding her body with more adrenaline, numbing the pain inflicted by the heiress. She pushed herself back up and drove out her knee. Again, shadow generated near Weiss and an exact replica of Blake crashed their knee into Weiss' temple, sending her to the ground.

She recovered from the dazing blow to the feel of cold steel pressing against her neck. The girl above, threatening to sever her jugular at the slightest provocation, looked worse for wear… but _she_ was the one primed to execute _her_. Weiss swallowed hard, feeling the blade bite gently into her neck drawing a small amount of blood. She didn't say anything to the victor, the laboured breathing being all that was swapped between the two before Blake raised her weapon and, quick as a flash, slammed it into Weiss' temple, the heiress falling to unconsciousness…


	2. Red and Black

Ears ringing, head spinning, tunneled vision fading from dark to light to dark again, Weiss could barely make out the simplest of details as she came to. Red, black, something cold, pain, lots of pain… and a voice, two of them.

"Looks like the princess really did a number on you…" spoke a decidedly masculine voice, his tone light with a dry layer of care and concern. Sympathetic mirth would best describe it.

Weiss craned her head to better see what was going on around her, a sharp pain lancing through her temple demanding she bite back a groan. The man was wearing a suit with some tribal decal stitched into the dark cloth. She couldn't make much else out what with his back to her, and herself being prostrated on the floor.

A soft, solitary chuckle resounded out, evidently not from the male. Weiss further strained to peer around, a droplet of blood splashing gently against the laminate flooring of the room catching her eye. The male appeared to be treating a wound of another person, a girl judging from the sound of the voice that replied. "Unfamiliar enemies tend to have a few tricks up their sleeves. Besides, she's here, isn't she?"

The man turned slightly, never glancing at Weiss and so never giving her a view of his face, not that she could take anything in with her head aching so. "I wasn't questioning your success, Blake, just saying that my partner's hurt…" Turning back, the male set about applying the bandage to his accomplice's wound, a quiet seethe escaping the girl as the man taped her hand up. "…You worry me sometimes, you know..."

The girl's reply was… surprisingly harsh, even Weiss believed it uncalled for. "Then stop. I'm your partner, _not_ your problem."

The male's head drooped a little. "Blake…"

"For the last time Adam: _Stop_ caring about me…" she cut off with a cold shouldering reply. Standing, Blake flexed her fingers before curling her fist up into a ball and relaxing again, allowing her fingers to idly stretch back out, a test of whether her left hand was still usable. It appeared so. "I'm not Kiera and I'm sure as hell not Serenity. I don't mix business with pleasure and we don't have time to be playing happy families…" The feline took a step towards Adam, her voice dropping an octave as she spoke succinctly yet again, each word delivered more viciously this time around. " _Stop. Caring. About. Me._ "

Adam appeared to meet her gaze before lowering his head back down, he turned away and walked out, Weiss picking up "you're all that's left…" being mumbled beneath his breath as he disappeared. Her attention was immediately pulled to the remaining Faunus, the girl who had knocked her unconscious and taken her prisoner.

"Hold still," commanded the deceptively delicate voice, now remarkably softer than it had been when the girl had rebuffed her partner. Weiss couldn't move even if she tried, at least not very far. As more of her senses returned to her, she began to distinguish the cold sensation: handcuffs bound her hands and feet. Blake had finished walking over to her and crouched down, placing down a bowl and soaking some cloth in it before wringing it out. Weiss eyed it with noticeable disconcertion. "It's just antibacterial soap and tepid water." Blake reassured gently. "It's not ideal, but it'll clean the cut and avoid infection…"

Cloth thoroughly wrung out, Blake moved a little closer to Weiss, hand cautiously edging towards her cut. Fighting stiffness, the heiress instinctually jerked away, crying out in pain as she did so. The other girl didn't react in the slightest. Instead she simply remained crouched with the cloth in her hand and watched the heiress struggle against her bindings.

As much as she strained, the steel wouldn't budge. She was helpless. And therefore at the mercy of her captor. All Weiss was doing was trying the girl's remarkable patience.

"It won't work…" Despite sounding emotionless, disinterested and detached, Blake found that she actually _wanted_ the Schnee girl to allow Blake to treat her wounds. "So as soon as you're done, let me know…"

Silence once again overtook the room, save for Weiss' slowly petering out struggles. The wriggling girl was getting nowhere fast and only succeeded in exacerbating the agony in her head. Blake waited a few moments longer, her lips quirking into a small smile when the heiress calmed. "Now, are you going to let me help you?"

"Why should I?" Weiss spat in response, trying to sound half-way menacing. She failed. No matter how hard she worked for it, she couldn't even put on the mask, let alone give Blake the opportunity to pick it apart or see through it.

Blake chuckled, once, it didn't escape her throat. "Because you gain nothing from not letting me tend to your wounds… aside from an infection to go with a possible concuss-"

"What on Remnant do you stand to gain from this anyways, _Faunus_!?" Weiss suddenly intercepted, _offended_ by the very idea of being nursed back to the health by the only woman to have ever hurt her.

"Nothing, at least not directly," was the cool reply that Blake let linger for a few moments before continuing. "But the White Fang heard of your father's illness through the grapevine…" The fear that poured from Weiss at that moment, Blake felt sorry for her, guilty even. This Schnee was not at all what she expected her to be. She pushed aside the sympathy. She had a job to do and, whether the fencer was innocent or not, her father had plenty of sins to justify the White Fang's actions. "There is one little thing we want, Heiress, and you're the key to getting it."

"And-and if something should happen to your k-key?" Weiss hadn't stuttered to anyone in six years, apart from her father that was, and that shoulder she once cried on. There was no denying it: Weiss Schnee was scared. "If… if you lose… m-me?"

"We won't." Blake stated firmly, the gravity in her voice suggesting certainty.

Weiss shifted in her bound position, trying her best to sit up and look at the Faunus' face. "And just how sure are you of that?"

Blake's response was unexpected, she had sighed. "My name is Blake Belladonna, codename Nightshade." There was another surge of fear, a glint of recognition in Weiss' eyes. That fear, now of Blake herself rather than the White Fang in general, made the Faunus feel like a monster but the guilt and self-loathing were easy to shake away. The world labelled her as a monster long before she actually became one, and she became one to free her species. This is who she needed to be in order to survive, to fight… to succeed…

"You are a bargaining chip, leverage. The Triumvirate are meticulous, they _will_ win. There's too much at stake, equality is too close, to fail. So you will live, and the only say you get in this is in how comfortable the next few days are for you. And that say is limited to how much I wish to give you. So… are you going to keep trying my patience?"

Weiss didn't dignify Blake with a verbal response. She simply, very reluctantly, let her body relax and inched closer to the dark-themed woman.

"Wise move," the Faunus commended almost condescendingly, before shuffling forward and pressing the damp cloth to the heiress' head. She winced at first contact, the pressure on her sickly bruise, combined with soapy water seeping into an open cut causing her to hiss. "Your Aura's weaker than I thought. I didn't intend to make you bleed…" The cloth slipped back over the cut, wiping away more blood. "Not that it matters."

Weiss took the opportunity to look over Blake's own body, noting that she had changed into track suit bottoms and a short-sleeved blouse, both black. Her bottoms had a grey crest emblazoned on the right thigh. Apart from the obviously taped up hand, the bandage around her left bicep was the only evidence of injury she could see, though the cloth of her top was raised slightly on her left shoulder, presumably where a gauze pad lay.

"So what's going to happen to me?" the heiress enquired, her voice still not completely steady. Blake thought for a moment before responding.

"That depends. You're my prisoner of war. If anything grievous and untoward happened to you on my watch without explicit permission from the Triumvirate, I'd lose my ears without a doubt." Black cat ears twitched reflexively. There was no greater shame for an individual than to the have the heritage they were fighting for stripped away. And there was no greater shame for the White Fang than to have one of its most influential members fail them; an eye for an eye, of sorts. "So if you let me, I'll do my best to take care of you."

Weiss was stunned for a moment. Why did Blake sound sincere? "And if I don't?"

"Then you'd be a fool." Letting her words hang, Blake turned away, moaning in pain as she did so, confirmation that she had even more wounds of war than she was willing to show. All the while, Blake held the cloth against the heiress' cut, stemming the bleeding whilst she reached for a small gauze pad.

Sure enough, the trickle of blood stopped, replaced with an accepted trickle of water where droplets squeezed out of the cloth and slipped down her cheek. Turning back to Weiss with a muttered curse, Blake removed the cloth, dried the running water and gently held the pad in place whilst tying a thin strip of cloth around Weiss' head to secure it there. "That should do for now, I'll check on it again in the morning. For now it's bruised pretty badly with a deep gash. You might have a concussion thanks to your Aura being pitifully weak…"

Weiss would have taken offense and argued her case in defense of herself but there was no point. Blake was right; in comparison to the Faunus' own, her Aura was pathetic. She'd mastered her craft in every art she had taken up including dance, swordplay, singing and her use of Dust and glyphs. But Aura? Her father never saw much reason for her to develop it, so it was easily the weakest thing about her…

"Now then, you need to rest," spoke the raven-haired girl, her tone taking a slightly commanding nature. "And I need to go join my headache of a partner." The White Fang operative stood up, now bearing over the supine Weiss quite intimidatingly. "I'd suggest sleeping. Who knows? Maybe when you next wake up this will all be over…"

Weiss' jaw dropped at Blake's last words. They weren't spoken with malice or a mocking tone. Blake's voice was… velvety, soothing. Footsteps signalled Blake's departure which was punctuated by a thud and the sound of a key turning, leaving her trapped. Only then did she let out a whimper…

* * *

Blake pulled on a simple, grey hooded sweatshirt before entering the living area where Adam had already opened up a communication link to the Triumvirate, the three members appearing on the large monitor Adam had hooked his scroll up to. Initial greetings out of the way, Adam was now confirming that Weiss was officially their prisoner. The eldest of the Triumvirate, Ivan, a lion Faunus chiseled from years of sustained warfare with dirty blonde, long flowing hair now slowly turning white and golden eyes not unlike Blake's own, turned to the new arrival, effectively dismissing Adam's presence.

"Ah, there you are Blake, very well done my child!" he congratulated as she took to standing next to the seated Taurus.

"It's Nightshade, sir," she replied, bowing her head. "And the mission wasn't finished without struggle. The Heiress is surprisingly well-versed in combat." She took a step backwards, as if handing the floor back to her more social partner, releasing herself from the limelight.

Ivan gave a conceding head tilt, complete with a contemplative hum before regarding the girl a second time. "And yet, regardless of the Heiress' unanticipated prowess, you were still able to defeat and subdue her…" Adam shuffled along the couch, offering his partner a seat but Blake shook her head. Ivan's gaze fell to Blake's hand which she quickly manoeuvred behind her back. "Even if you did pick up a few injuries along the way…"

"Excuse me sir but I came here for an update on the current situation with Mr. Schnee… I don't need, and I certainly don't _want_ , your empty praise…" Blake responded, folding her arms to punctuate the response.

Whilst Ivan smiled, Salem, the bald, black-eyed snake Faunus, and Okami, the blue-eyed, white-haired wolf Faunus, the lone female triumvir, both remained expressionless. "I assure you Blake, it is not empty. You make me prouder every day…" Blake let out a throaty growl in response that only Adam picked up on.

"Nightshade is right, Sabre, we are here to discuss plans for the heiress not watch another display of favouritism from you." Okami spoke, returning everyone to the matter at hand. Ivan simply nodded whilst Blake and Adam both bowed their heads in respect once more. "So Salem, what _did_ you tell Weiss' father?"

* * *

A lot of people would whisper a lot of things about the president of the SDC, Lutolf Schnee; cold, cerebral, cruel, almighty, unbreakable… destructive. Most of these would be whispered in hushed tones lest the speaker risk finding out just how grounded in reality their slanderous claims truly were. But right now? There were only a few words that could describe Lutolf at this moment in time, and none would do him justice: _weak_ , _pitiful_ , _vulnerable,_ _helpless…_

No amount of guardsmen, money, Dust, cruelty or dominance could save Lutolf from himself. He hadn't been unbreakable, the White Fang had proven that when they took away his wife. They cracked him then, and then proceeded to throw stone after stone at that tiny fracture in his defences. On the outside, Lutolf portrayed himself as a monster, a king of kings, a tyrant absent mercy, one willing to go as far as to personally buy Atlesian military tech and sic it on his enemies. But behind closed doors, away from the public eye, everything was different.

He was paranoid, to the point where he made his fortress impenetrable. He was angry, to the point where he had to vent his frustrations on his own daughters. And he was stressed and heartbroken, to the point where alcohol was all that could numb the pain. Not a soul had ever seen evidence of the fact that Lutolf had been living in a perpetual dark hour ever since the White Fang's first real attack. Not a soul had ever seen the devil that was Lutolf cry, and yet it did happen. In fact it was rare for a week to go by without the man letting at least a single tear slip…

Lutolf was a broken man. And, in breaking him, the White Fang had inadvertently and unknowingly discovered the one thing they could do to kill him. They had driven him to voluntarily drink the most legal of poisons and it had finally taken him, the alcohol had finally destroyed Lutolf from the inside, and all that remained was an old man giving the order to have papers drawn up. He prayed Weiss was ready for this.

A knock on the door echoed through his ward room, the place as drab and dreary as one might expect a militaristic hospital to be, effective if ugly. A huntsman answered. Neptune was his name, not that Lutolf cared. He was just paid muscle there to protect him during his weakest moment. What Lutolf did care about, however, was the man who had entered without permission: His lawyer. He let out a groan as he feebly pushed himself up to a seated position and regarded the aged, grey haired bespectacled man wearing a typical white Schnee Company tuxedo with the Schnee logo on the lapel.

"Mr. Schnee…" he greeted weakly.

* * *

"That's not going to work, you know that right?" Weiss asked, a tone of disbelief in her voice that both annoyed and worried the black-haired girl who leaned against the door watching her eat, her handcuffs now traded for chains to allow a greater amount of freedom. Pushing off of the metal, Blake took a few steps forward, making sure to keep herself between Weiss and the heiress' only means of escape.

"Your father is dying, the deeds to the company are being drawn up this very instant and you are his daughter, the last member of his family we didn't tear from this world. If he wants you to live, he will sign over the deeds to his company to Wolfram Schwarz."

"But that's just it." Weiss spat venomously, her tone only growing harsher as she continued. "My father would _gladly_ let me die if it meant not bowing down to you… He doesn't care about me. He doesn't care about anyone but himself. He's a bastard. And you giving him this lose-lose situation is only going to backfire."

Blake couldn't help but break into a condescending laugh at that. Weiss may have been sweet and innocent, but goddamn was she naïve and optimistic. "You keep telling yourself that, Heiress…"

* * *

"But sir is it really worth the risk?"

"Do not question me, Onyx." Lutolf chastised before turning to Neptune. "You're a huntsman. Does that mean you have any way of contacting The Networker?"

The huntsman in question shifted from leaning casually against a wall with his arms folded to stepping forward and taking up a more formal stance. "It does, though if you're going to send hunters to chase down and save your daughter, then I'd recommend just asking me to round up my old team…"

"No," Lutolf cut off abrasively. "If I'm going to do this, I'm going to do this right and there are only two huntresses in this world that I trust with my daughter's life…"

Onyx once again tried to be the voice of reason. "But sir, you've read the message, The Triumvirate will not shy away from killing your da-"

"I am well aware of the risks, Onyx," Lutolf intercepted, his voice dangerously low now, Onyx's vain attempts at reasoning invoking Lutolf's usual disdain and stubborness. "But a Schnee never kneels. And I'll be damned if I lose my company _and_ my bloodline! I will _not_ allow the White Fang to steal away what little I have left…" Leaving it there, Lutolf regarded Neptune once more. "Make the call."

* * *

The contemplative hum that filled the air created a metronome when combined with the steady tap of a finger rapping against the desk and signaled only one thing: Pyrrha Nikos was hard at work. "Hmm…" _Is it really the right time to reveal that Ambrose is secretly the Garnet Knight? Perhaps I should push that back and make Sapphire's suspicions grow for a little while longer… Or maybe-_

The sound of the rickety door of her apartment opening and a gait that could only belong to one woman filling her ears tore Pyrrha from her thoughts. She turned from her chair and took in the new arrival. A tall girl with a bust rivaling her own, short red and black hair and a face unfortunately hardened beyond its years was walking towards her, stepping over the hunter magazine and empty coffee mug that filled the floor space between a worn, brown leather couch and a cluttered glass coffee table.

"Ruby!" Pyrrha greeted with a wide beam, jumping out of her chair to meet the girl half-way, drawing her into a tender embrace. "I'm so glad you're okay!" She couldn't help but notice that the returning girl was clad in grey skin-tight jeans and a red frilly blouse. Ruby had spent the night at Yang's, presumably to let her wounds heal so as to not worry Pyrrha, before returning clean and refreshed.

Ruby could only give a nervous chuckle as she reciprocated the hug, too busy breathing in the intoxicating scent of maple she'd spent far too long away from. "Told you so," she noted childishly before appending a more serious and genuine "I missed you so much…" to the end that filled Pyrrha with warmth and glee. The duo fell into a pleasant silence for several moments as the two girls just held one another and it was, as it always had to be, Pyrrha who finally broke away from the younger redhead.

"So how'd it go? What happened?" asked Pyrrha cheerfully, the excitement in her tone transparent and the twinkle in her eyes undisguisable. "Tell me all about it!"

"Eh…" Ruby shrugged, killing the conversation then and there with a single hand gesture. "Huntress stuff, some Grimm here, some uncomfortable nights sleeping on a rock there, it's not that exciting. How's the book coming along?"

Pyrrha's mouth curved downwards into a ghost of a frown for a moment before pricking back up into a wide, if not entirely genuine, smile. "Oh, it's just grand! I was hoping to get your opinion on something, actually!"

Ruby's response was a childish, excited squeal as she dragged Pyrrha by her hands towards the desk and sat her back down. "Okay, okay, so first thing's first: I need to get to reading. I know what you're like; you'll have written like half of the entire novel in the two weeks I've been away, so that's a lot of catching up!"

Pyrrha chuckled before speaking, a hint of pride seeping into her voice. "Oh I don't know about half but I've certainly made some headway. Though if you're going to read it why do you need-oof!" The twenty-two year old answered Pyrrha's unfinished question by plonking herself down on Pyrrha's lap and flicked back a couple of chapters until she found the big reveal Pyrrha used as a cliff hanger to give Ruby yet more incentive to return alive.

"You're comfier than the chair." She finally replied, wriggling about for a few seconds until she found a sweet spot and proceeding to melt against Pyrrha's frame.

"Fair enough," she conceded. "But I have to say, you should try being the chair sometimes." Ruby let out a contented sigh as she felt two strong arms wrap around her, squeezing tenderly around her stomach and pulling her even closer still. "You'd be surprised where you can get comfy when you have a redhead in your arms."

Ruby allowed her attention to be divided, her eyes trained on the screen whilst listening intently to every last one of Pyrrha's words. The Spartan would never see it, but a sly smile graced Ruby's face. "But I'm a natural brunette…" she chirped as she continued reading, slowly being drawn into the world her girlfriend had created… only to be swiftly pulled out of it when Pyrrha gently hit her stomach playfully, eliciting a giggle from Ruby. "But I do prefer red…"

"Damn right you do!" Pyrrha joked, tightening her hold on Ruby so it was tender yet firm and planting a kiss on Ruby's neck before settling down with her chin comfortably resting atop her girl's left shoulder. Emerald eyes however weren't trained on the pages that Ruby's silver ones read with a twinkle. Instead, Pyrrha engrossed herself in what little of Ruby's facial expressions she could see from out the corner of her right eye, the girl's enrapturing features telling their own story as she gleefully read the fruits of Pyrrha's last remaining labour.

After Ruby had finished catching up on Pyrrha's story, the two had descended into an enjoyable two-hour long session of serious discussion, terrible suggestions and a lot of off-topic tangents. By the time the moon graced the sky, fractured and wondrous, the pair of redheads had somehow managed to hammer out the details of the next few chapters and Ruby had retreated to the settee with a "No, no, no, you shouldn't stop right now, besides I already have a date planned before mine and Yang's next mission. We have plenty of time to just be together, I promise…"

Pyrrha obliged her girlfriend, trying to extinguish the flame of excitement ignited by the idea of _finally_ going out on a second date with her girlfriend of nineteen months. And so that was how they ended up in their current positions. Pyrrha was sat at her desk, throwing her heart and soul into every word. And Ruby was lay on the couch, caught between whether to laugh or roll her eyes at the TV show she was watching. Deciding on neither, she cast a prideful glance over towards her girlfriend and pouted upon seeing Pyrrha rubbing her neck with her hand, craning her head from right to left and back again in an attempt to work out some stiffness.

"You okay there?" Ruby asked softly.

"Yeah…" said Pyrrha as she continued her writing with her right hand whilst the left tried desperately to loosen up the muscles in her neck.

"You want a massage?" her girlfriend followed up lovingly.

Pyrrha took a moment to think, hand still working to rub away the knot in her neck before she finally answered, pleaded. "…Please…"

With a caring smile, Ruby hopped up from the couch, muted the television and walked over to Pyrrha. The redhead felt relief in seconds as practised, calloused fingers pressed into her neck finding each sore muscle, gently kneading the fragile bone that served as the source of discomfort, and lit Pyrrha's nerves aflame with pleasure. The moan that escaped was born of both the pleasure and the relief, and the older girl followed it up immediately with a happy sigh.

"You feeling better?"

"Much."

"You want me to keep going?"

"Mmm, if you'd be so kind..."

Ruby gave a consenting "Of course" and continued her ministrations, both proud and happy that she could help care for her girlfriend during such times when her injury flared up, an unwelcome reminder of past events. Pyrrha for her part returned to her work, and Ruby allowed herself fleeting glances at her lover's efforts.

Twelve minutes passed by like this, Ruby massaging her girlfriend's neck as she typed away, engrossed in the act of writing. And it wasn't until Ruby's scroll began to buzz, and an upbeat song, one of the last Yang ever wrote, _Gold_ , played over the speakers shattering the peace and quiet, that Ruby let out a sigh and reluctantly broke the tender, loving contact with Pyrrha in order to answer.

"Oh. Hey," Ruby greeted, surprised and yet irritated to hear the Networker's voice. "We've just came back from that last job, what's so important that you-"

"Trust me Ruby," The Networker cut off unable to hide the excitement in his voice. "Neptune just got in touch, major job, massive payoff, and err… Yang will _definitely_ want in on this…"

Ruby's face contorted into confusion as she deliberated over her contact's vagueness.

There wasn't a whole lot that could get Yang motivated these days…

"What's this about?" she asked curiously. Her jaw hit the floor at his two-word reply.

"Weiss Schnee."

**Chapter 2 – Red and Black  
**

Ears ringing, head spinning, tunneled vision fading from dark to light to dark again, Weiss could barely make out the simplest of details as she came to. Red, black, something cold, pain, lots of pain… and a voice, two of them.

"Looks like the princess really did a number on you…" spoke a decidedly masculine voice, his tone light with a dry layer of care and concern. Sympathetic mirth would best describe it.

Weiss craned her head to better see what was going on around her, a sharp pain lancing through her temple demanding she bite back a groan. The man was wearing a suit with some tribal decal stitched into the dark cloth. She couldn't make much else out what with his back to her, and herself being prostrated on the floor.

A soft, solitary chuckle resounded out, evidently not from the male. Weiss further strained to peer around, a droplet of blood splashing gently against the laminate flooring of the room catching her eye. The male appeared to be treating a wound of another person, a girl judging from the sound of the voice that replied. "Unfamiliar enemies tend to have a few tricks up their sleeves. Besides, she's here, isn't she?"

The man turned slightly, never glancing at Weiss and so never giving her a view of his face, not that she could take anything in with her head aching so. "I wasn't questioning your success, Blake, just saying that my partner's hurt…" Turning back, the male set about applying the bandage to his accomplice's wound, a quiet seethe escaping the girl as the man taped her hand up. "…You worry me sometimes, you know..."

The girl's reply was… surprisingly harsh, even Weiss believed it uncalled for. "Then stop. I'm your partner, _not_ your problem."

The male's head drooped a little. "Blake…"

"For the last time Adam: _Stop_ caring about me…" she cut off with a cold shouldering reply. Standing, Blake flexed her fingers before curling her fist up into a ball and relaxing again, allowing her fingers to idly stretch back out, a test of whether her left hand was still usable. It appeared so. "I'm not Kiera and I'm sure as hell not Serenity. I don't mix business with pleasure and we don't have time to be playing happy families…" The feline took a step towards Adam, her voice dropping an octave as she spoke succinctly yet again, each word delivered more viciously this time around. " _Stop. Caring. About. Me._ "

Adam appeared to meet her gaze before lowering his head back down, he turned away and walked out, Weiss picking up "you're all that's left…" being mumbled beneath his breath as he disappeared. Her attention was immediately pulled to the remaining Faunus, the girl who had knocked her unconscious and taken her prisoner.

"Hold still," commanded the deceptively delicate voice, now remarkably softer than it had been when the girl had rebuffed her partner. Weiss couldn't move even if she tried, at least not very far. As more of her senses returned to her, she began to distinguish the cold sensation: handcuffs bound her hands and feet. Blake had finished walking over to her and crouched down, placing down a bowl and soaking some cloth in it before wringing it out. Weiss eyed it with noticeable disconcertion. "It's just antibacterial soap and tepid water." Blake reassured gently. "It's not ideal, but it'll clean the cut and avoid infection…"

Cloth thoroughly wrung out, Blake moved a little closer to Weiss, hand cautiously edging towards her cut. Fighting stiffness, the heiress instinctually jerked away, crying out in pain as she did so. The other girl didn't react in the slightest. Instead she simply remained crouched with the cloth in her hand and watched the heiress struggle against her bindings.

As much as she strained, the steel wouldn't budge. She was helpless. And therefore at the mercy of her captor. All Weiss was doing was trying the girl's remarkable patience.

"It won't work…" Despite sounding emotionless, disinterested and detached, Blake found that she actually _wanted_ the Schnee girl to allow Blake to treat her wounds. "So as soon as you're done, let me know…"

Silence once again overtook the room, save for Weiss' slowly petering out struggles. The wriggling girl was getting nowhere fast and only succeeded in exacerbating the agony in her head. Blake waited a few moments longer, her lips quirking into a small smile when the heiress calmed. "Now, are you going to let me help you?"

"Why should I?" Weiss spat in response, trying to sound half-way menacing. She failed. No matter how hard she worked for it, she couldn't even put on the mask, let alone give Blake the opportunity to pick it apart or see through it.

Blake chuckled, once, it didn't escape her throat. "Because you gain nothing from not letting me tend to your wounds… aside from an infection to go with a possible concuss-"

"What on Remnant do you stand to gain from this anyways, _Faunus_!?" Weiss suddenly intercepted, _offended_ by the very idea of being nursed back to the health by the only woman to have ever hurt her.

"Nothing, at least not directly," was the cool reply that Blake let linger for a few moments before continuing. "But the White Fang heard of your father's illness through the grapevine…" The fear that poured from Weiss at that moment, Blake felt sorry for her, guilty even. This Schnee was not at all what she expected her to be. She pushed aside the sympathy. She had a job to do and, whether the fencer was innocent or not, her father had plenty of sins to justify the White Fang's actions. "There is one little thing we want, Heiress, and you're the key to getting it."

"And-and if something should happen to your k-key?" Weiss hadn't stuttered to anyone in six years, apart from her father that was, and that shoulder she once cried on. There was no denying it: Weiss Schnee was scared. "If… if you lose… m-me?"

"We won't." Blake stated firmly, the gravity in her voice suggesting certainty.

Weiss shifted in her bound position, trying her best to sit up and look at the Faunus' face. "And just how sure are you of that?"

Blake's response was unexpected, she had sighed. "My name is Blake Belladonna, codename Nightshade." There was another surge of fear, a glint of recognition in Weiss' eyes. That fear, now of Blake herself rather than the White Fang in general, made the Faunus feel like a monster but the guilt and self-loathing were easy to shake away. The world labelled her as a monster long before she actually became one, and she became one to free her species. This is who she needed to be in order to survive, to fight… to succeed…

"You are a bargaining chip, leverage. The Triumvirate are meticulous, they _will_ win. There's too much at stake, equality is too close, to fail. So you will live, and the only say you get in this is in how comfortable the next few days are for you. And that say is limited to how much I wish to give you. So… are you going to keep trying my patience?"

Weiss didn't dignify Blake with a verbal response. She simply, very reluctantly, let her body relax and inched closer to the dark-themed woman.

"Wise move," the Faunus commended almost condescendingly, before shuffling forward and pressing the damp cloth to the heiress' head. She winced at first contact, the pressure on her sickly bruise, combined with soapy water seeping into an open cut causing her to hiss. "Your Aura's weaker than I thought. I didn't intend to make you bleed…" The cloth slipped back over the cut, wiping away more blood. "Not that it matters."

Weiss took the opportunity to look over Blake's own body, noting that she had changed into track suit bottoms and a short-sleeved blouse, both black. Her bottoms had a grey crest emblazoned on the right thigh. Apart from the obviously taped up hand, the bandage around her left bicep was the only evidence of injury she could see, though the cloth of her top was raised slightly on her left shoulder, presumably where a gauze pad lay.

"So what's going to happen to me?" the heiress enquired, her voice still not completely steady. Blake thought for a moment before responding.

"That depends. You're my prisoner of war. If anything grievous and untoward happened to you on my watch without explicit permission from the Triumvirate, I'd lose my ears without a doubt." Black cat ears twitched reflexively. There was no greater shame for an individual than to the have the heritage they were fighting for stripped away. And there was no greater shame for the White Fang than to have one of its most influential members fail them; an eye for an eye, of sorts. "So if you let me, I'll do my best to take care of you."

Weiss was stunned for a moment. Why did Blake sound sincere? "And if I don't?"

"Then you'd be a fool." Letting her words hang, Blake turned away, moaning in pain as she did so, confirmation that she had even more wounds of war than she was willing to show. All the while, Blake held the cloth against the heiress' cut, stemming the bleeding whilst she reached for a small gauze pad.

Sure enough, the trickle of blood stopped, replaced with an accepted trickle of water where droplets squeezed out of the cloth and slipped down her cheek. Turning back to Weiss with a muttered curse, Blake removed the cloth, dried the running water and gently held the pad in place whilst tying a thin strip of cloth around Weiss' head to secure it there. "That should do for now, I'll check on it again in the morning. For now it's bruised pretty badly with a deep gash. You might have a concussion thanks to your Aura being pitifully weak…"

Weiss would have taken offense and argued her case in defense of herself but there was no point. Blake was right; in comparison to the Faunus' own, her Aura was pathetic. She'd mastered her craft in every art she had taken up including dance, swordplay, singing and her use of Dust and glyphs. But Aura? Her father never saw much reason for her to develop it, so it was easily the weakest thing about her…

"Now then, you need to rest," spoke the raven-haired girl, her tone taking a slightly commanding nature. "And I need to go join my headache of a partner." The White Fang operative stood up, now bearing over the supine Weiss quite intimidatingly. "I'd suggest sleeping. Who knows? Maybe when you next wake up this will all be over…"

Weiss' jaw dropped at Blake's last words. They weren't spoken with malice or a mocking tone. Blake's voice was… velvety, soothing. Footsteps signalled Blake's departure which was punctuated by a thud and the sound of a key turning, leaving her trapped. Only then did she let out a whimper…

* * *

Blake pulled on a simple, grey hooded sweatshirt before entering the living area where Adam had already opened up a communication link to the Triumvirate, the three members appearing on the large monitor Adam had hooked his scroll up to. Initial greetings out of the way, Adam was now confirming that Weiss was officially their prisoner. The eldest of the Triumvirate, Ivan, a lion Faunus chiseled from years of sustained warfare with dirty blonde, long flowing hair now slowly turning white and golden eyes not unlike Blake's own, turned to the new arrival, effectively dismissing Adam's presence.

"Ah, there you are Blake, very well done my child!" he congratulated as she took to standing next to the seated Taurus.

"It's Nightshade, sir," she replied, bowing her head. "And the mission wasn't finished without struggle. The Heiress is surprisingly well-versed in combat." She took a step backwards, as if handing the floor back to her more social partner, releasing herself from the limelight.

Ivan gave a conceding head tilt, complete with a contemplative hum before regarding the girl a second time. "And yet, regardless of the Heiress' unanticipated prowess, you were still able to defeat and subdue her…" Adam shuffled along the couch, offering his partner a seat but Blake shook her head. Ivan's gaze fell to Blake's hand which she quickly manoeuvred behind her back. "Even if you did pick up a few injuries along the way…"

"Excuse me sir but I came here for an update on the current situation with Mr. Schnee… I don't need, and I certainly don't _want_ , your empty praise…" Blake responded, folding her arms to punctuate the response.

Whilst Ivan smiled, Salem, the bald, black-eyed snake Faunus, and Okami, the blue-eyed, white-haired wolf Faunus, the lone female triumvir, both remained expressionless. "I assure you Blake, it is not empty. You make me prouder every day…" Blake let out a throaty growl in response that only Adam picked up on.

"Nightshade is right, Sabre, we are here to discuss plans for the heiress not watch another display of favouritism from you." Okami spoke, returning everyone to the matter at hand. Ivan simply nodded whilst Blake and Adam both bowed their heads in respect once more. "So Salem, what _did_ you tell Weiss' father?"

* * *

A lot of people would whisper a lot of things about the president of the SDC, Lutolf Schnee; cold, cerebral, cruel, almighty, unbreakable… destructive. Most of these would be whispered in hushed tones lest the speaker risk finding out just how grounded in reality their slanderous claims truly were. But right now? There were only a few words that could describe Lutolf at this moment in time, and none would do him justice: _weak_ , _pitiful_ , _vulnerable,_ _helpless…_

No amount of guardsmen, money, Dust, cruelty or dominance could save Lutolf from himself. He hadn't been unbreakable, the White Fang had proven that when they took away his wife. They cracked him then, and then proceeded to throw stone after stone at that tiny fracture in his defences. On the outside, Lutolf portrayed himself as a monster, a king of kings, a tyrant absent mercy, one willing to go as far as to personally buy Atlesian military tech and sic it on his enemies. But behind closed doors, away from the public eye, everything was different.

He was paranoid, to the point where he made his fortress impenetrable. He was angry, to the point where he had to vent his frustrations on his own daughters. And he was stressed and heartbroken, to the point where alcohol was all that could numb the pain. Not a soul had ever seen evidence of the fact that Lutolf had been living in a perpetual dark hour ever since the White Fang's first real attack. Not a soul had ever seen the devil that was Lutolf cry, and yet it did happen. In fact it was rare for a week to go by without the man letting at least a single tear slip…

Lutolf was a broken man. And, in breaking him, the White Fang had inadvertently and unknowingly discovered the one thing they could do to kill him. They had driven him to voluntarily drink the most legal of poisons and it had finally taken him, the alcohol had finally destroyed Lutolf from the inside, and all that remained was an old man giving the order to have papers drawn up. He prayed Weiss was ready for this.

A knock on the door echoed through his ward room, the place as drab and dreary as one might expect a militaristic hospital to be, effective if ugly. A huntsman answered. Neptune was his name, not that Lutolf cared. He was just paid muscle there to protect him during his weakest moment. What Lutolf did care about, however, was the man who had entered without permission: His lawyer. He let out a groan as he feebly pushed himself up to a seated position and regarded the aged, grey haired bespectacled man wearing a typical white Schnee Company tuxedo with the Schnee logo on the lapel.

"Mr. Schnee…" he greeted weakly.

* * *

"That's not going to work, you know that right?" Weiss asked, a tone of disbelief in her voice that both annoyed and worried the black-haired girl who leaned against the door watching her eat, her handcuffs now traded for chains to allow a greater amount of freedom. Pushing off of the metal, Blake took a few steps forward, making sure to keep herself between Weiss and the heiress' only means of escape.

"Your father is dying, the deeds to the company are being drawn up this very instant and you are his daughter, the last member of his family we didn't tear from this world. If he wants you to live, he will sign over the deeds to his company to Wolfram Schwarz."

"But that's just it." Weiss spat venomously, her tone only growing harsher as she continued. "My father would _gladly_ let me die if it meant not bowing down to you… He doesn't care about me. He doesn't care about anyone but himself. He's a bastard. And you giving him this lose-lose situation is only going to backfire."

Blake couldn't help but break into a condescending laugh at that. Weiss may have been sweet and innocent, but goddamn was she naïve and optimistic. "You keep telling yourself that, Heiress…"

* * *

"But sir is it really worth the risk?"

"Do not question me, Onyx." Lutolf chastised before turning to Neptune. "You're a huntsman. Does that mean you have any way of contacting The Networker?"

The huntsman in question shifted from leaning casually against a wall with his arms folded to stepping forward and taking up a more formal stance. "It does, though if you're going to send hunters to chase down and save your daughter, then I'd recommend just asking me to round up my old team…"

"No," Lutolf cut off abrasively. "If I'm going to do this, I'm going to do this right and there are only two huntresses in this world that I trust with my daughter's life…"

Onyx once again tried to be the voice of reason. "But sir, you've read the message, The Triumvirate will not shy away from killing your da-"

"I am well aware of the risks, Onyx," Lutolf intercepted, his voice dangerously low now, Onyx's vain attempts at reasoning invoking Lutolf's usual disdain and stubborness. "But a Schnee never kneels. And I'll be damned if I lose my company _and_ my bloodline! I will _not_ allow the White Fang to steal away what little I have left…" Leaving it there, Lutolf regarded Neptune once more. "Make the call."

* * *

The contemplative hum that filled the air created a metronome when combined with the steady tap of a finger rapping against the desk and signaled only one thing: Pyrrha Nikos was hard at work. "Hmm…" _Is it really the right time to reveal that Ambrose is secretly the Garnet Knight? Perhaps I should push that back and make Sapphire's suspicions grow for a little while longer… Or maybe-_

The sound of the rickety door of her apartment opening and a gait that could only belong to one woman filling her ears tore Pyrrha from her thoughts. She turned from her chair and took in the new arrival. A tall girl with a bust rivaling her own, short red and black hair and a face unfortunately hardened beyond its years was walking towards her, stepping over the hunter magazine and empty coffee mug that filled the floor space between a worn, brown leather couch and a cluttered glass coffee table.

"Ruby!" Pyrrha greeted with a wide beam, jumping out of her chair to meet the girl half-way, drawing her into a tender embrace. "I'm so glad you're okay!" She couldn't help but notice that the returning girl was clad in grey skin-tight jeans and a red frilly blouse. Ruby had spent the night at Yang's, presumably to let her wounds heal so as to not worry Pyrrha, before returning clean and refreshed.

Ruby could only give a nervous chuckle as she reciprocated the hug, too busy breathing in the intoxicating scent of maple she'd spent far too long away from. "Told you so," she noted childishly before appending a more serious and genuine "I missed you so much…" to the end that filled Pyrrha with warmth and glee. The duo fell into a pleasant silence for several moments as the two girls just held one another and it was, as it always had to be, Pyrrha who finally broke away from the younger redhead.

"So how'd it go? What happened?" asked Pyrrha cheerfully, the excitement in her tone transparent and the twinkle in her eyes undisguisable. "Tell me all about it!"

"Eh…" Ruby shrugged, killing the conversation then and there with a single hand gesture. "Huntress stuff, some Grimm here, some uncomfortable nights sleeping on a rock there, it's not that exciting. How's the book coming along?"

Pyrrha's mouth curved downwards into a ghost of a frown for a moment before pricking back up into a wide, if not entirely genuine, smile. "Oh, it's just grand! I was hoping to get your opinion on something, actually!"

Ruby's response was a childish, excited squeal as she dragged Pyrrha by her hands towards the desk and sat her back down. "Okay, okay, so first thing's first: I need to get to reading. I know what you're like; you'll have written like half of the entire novel in the two weeks I've been away, so that's a lot of catching up!"

Pyrrha chuckled before speaking, a hint of pride seeping into her voice. "Oh I don't know about half but I've certainly made some headway. Though if you're going to read it why do you need-oof!" The twenty-two year old answered Pyrrha's unfinished question by plonking herself down on Pyrrha's lap and flicked back a couple of chapters until she found the big reveal Pyrrha used as a cliff hanger to give Ruby yet more incentive to return alive.

"You're comfier than the chair." She finally replied, wriggling about for a few seconds until she found a sweet spot and proceeding to melt against Pyrrha's frame.

"Fair enough," she conceded. "But I have to say, you should try being the chair sometimes." Ruby let out a contented sigh as she felt two strong arms wrap around her, squeezing tenderly around her stomach and pulling her even closer still. "You'd be surprised where you can get comfy when you have a redhead in your arms."

Ruby allowed her attention to be divided, her eyes trained on the screen whilst listening intently to every last one of Pyrrha's words. The Spartan would never see it, but a sly smile graced Ruby's face. "But I'm a natural brunette…" she chirped as she continued reading, slowly being drawn into the world her girlfriend had created… only to be swiftly pulled out of it when Pyrrha gently hit her stomach playfully, eliciting a giggle from Ruby. "But I do prefer red…"

"Damn right you do!" Pyrrha joked, tightening her hold on Ruby so it was tender yet firm and planting a kiss on Ruby's neck before settling down with her chin comfortably resting atop her girl's left shoulder. Emerald eyes however weren't trained on the pages that Ruby's silver ones read with a twinkle. Instead, Pyrrha engrossed herself in what little of Ruby's facial expressions she could see from out the corner of her right eye, the girl's enrapturing features telling their own story as she gleefully read the fruits of Pyrrha's last remaining labour.

After Ruby had finished catching up on Pyrrha's story, the two had descended into an enjoyable two-hour long session of serious discussion, terrible suggestions and a lot of off-topic tangents. By the time the moon graced the sky, fractured and wondrous, the pair of redheads had somehow managed to hammer out the details of the next few chapters and Ruby had retreated to the settee with a "No, no, no, you shouldn't stop right now, besides I already have a date planned before mine and Yang's next mission. We have plenty of time to just be together, I promise…"

Pyrrha obliged her girlfriend, trying to extinguish the flame of excitement ignited by the idea of _finally_ going out on a second date with her girlfriend of nineteen months. And so that was how they ended up in their current positions. Pyrrha was sat at her desk, throwing her heart and soul into every word. And Ruby was lay on the couch, caught between whether to laugh or roll her eyes at the TV show she was watching. Deciding on neither, she cast a prideful glance over towards her girlfriend and pouted upon seeing Pyrrha rubbing her neck with her hand, craning her head from right to left and back again in an attempt to work out some stiffness.

"You okay there?" Ruby asked softly.

"Yeah…" said Pyrrha as she continued her writing with her right hand whilst the left tried desperately to loosen up the muscles in her neck.

"You want a massage?" her girlfriend followed up lovingly.

Pyrrha took a moment to think, hand still working to rub away the knot in her neck before she finally answered, pleaded. "…Please…"

With a caring smile, Ruby hopped up from the couch, muted the television and walked over to Pyrrha. The redhead felt relief in seconds as practised, calloused fingers pressed into her neck finding each sore muscle, gently kneading the fragile bone that served as the source of discomfort, and lit Pyrrha's nerves aflame with pleasure. The moan that escaped was born of both the pleasure and the relief, and the older girl followed it up immediately with a happy sigh.

"You feeling better?"

"Much."

"You want me to keep going?"

"Mmm, if you'd be so kind..."

Ruby gave a consenting "Of course" and continued her ministrations, both proud and happy that she could help care for her girlfriend during such times when her injury flared up, an unwelcome reminder of past events. Pyrrha for her part returned to her work, and Ruby allowed herself fleeting glances at her lover's efforts.

Twelve minutes passed by like this, Ruby massaging her girlfriend's neck as she typed away, engrossed in the act of writing. And it wasn't until Ruby's scroll began to buzz, and an upbeat song, one of the last Yang ever wrote, _Gold_ , played over the speakers shattering the peace and quiet, that Ruby let out a sigh and reluctantly broke the tender, loving contact with Pyrrha in order to answer.

"Oh. Hey," Ruby greeted, surprised and yet irritated to hear the Networker's voice. "We've just came back from that last job, what's so important that you-"

"Trust me Ruby," The Networker cut off unable to hide the excitement in his voice. "Neptune just got in touch, major job, massive payoff, and err… Yang will _definitely_ want in on this…"

Ruby's face contorted into confusion as she deliberated over her contact's vagueness.

There wasn't a whole lot that could get Yang motivated these days…

"What's this about?" she asked curiously. Her jaw hit the floor at his two-word reply.

"Weiss Schnee."


	3. Ghosts, Demons and Devils

_Knuckles bruised, fists caked in still drying blood, Yang Xiao Long was stood alone, gazing intently at her aching hands. Suddenly a cry snapped her from her reverie, a shout, a crash. It was her. He was taking her away!_

_Ignoring the bloody and bruised bodies by her feet, the blonde brawler released a low, guttural growl before storming out of the once pristine, white-themed bedroom. She found herself inexplicably stepping outside of a prison cell, the beautiful architecture of a palace now replaced with the grunge and despair of a dungeon. Glancing around frantically, Yang filled the air with more frustrated grunts and groans until she found her._

_Lilac briefly flashed to red at the tears in the girl's eyes, the absolute lack of struggle as her wrist was nearly crushed in the grasp of her father. "YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO HER!" she screeched._

_Yang took off towards the duo, intent on freeing the girl from her monster of a father… only to forcibly grind to a halt when a guard appeared in front of her, blocking her path. Taking stock of the situation, Yang found that guardsmen somehow had her surrounded, and he was leveling her with a glare of absolute disdain._

" _SHE'S MY DAUGHTER AND I WILL DO WHAT I PLEASE AND WHAT I MUST TO HER!" he bellowed back, snarling at the boxer. "AND I WILL NOT ALLOW HER TO SHOW WEAKNESS! I WILL NOT LET HER BLATANTLY DISREGARD ORDERS! AND I MOST CERTAINLY WON'T STAND FOR HER EMBRACING DISCORD AND SOCIALISING WITH THE LIKES OF YOU!"_

_Yang would've offered a rebuke had three guards not chosen that moment to run at the blonde, attempting to tackle her to the ground. She contorted her body to the right to let the first fly past her. Absent target, he thudded to the ground with a groan. The second she crouched down, pirouetted and threw out her leg for, tripping him up before coming back to a stable stance with an uppercut, cracking the jaw of the third._

_Then they all piled in._

_The father_ _was left gobsmacked as he watched on, this girl ducked and weaved around eight different highly trained fighters effortlessly. Every punch thrown at her was either dodged with expertly timed head jerks and muscle tenses, her body melting around the blows ensuring she was left without a scratch, or they were blocked effortlessly, her closed fists slamming against the forearms being thrown towards her with bruising force._

_Meanwhile his daughter was awestruck, her mouth agape, her eyes wide and her breath held. This blonde girl was fighting with a strange, visceral elegance. She'd majestically pirouette between three erratically aimed blows, before grounding herself and throwing out a rib-cracking fist that'd knocked one of her opponents out for the count. She'd then roll or back flip away, incredible litheness belying her size and power, only to jump up, deliver a kick to one guardsman and use him as a platform to propel her into a superman punch on another._

_One could liken her means to a beautifully unconventional dance, and yet the only words to describe her ends were "brutal savagery"._

_More guards piled in and Yang kept on fighting, refusing to let him win, refusing to let the girl remain in the hell she'd been trapped in her entire life. The numbers eventually forced advantage, Yang slowly losing the room to breathe. That was until she glanced over at her._

_A collar now lay around her neck and her hands and feet were now shackled. Hopelessness lay in her dull eyes..._

_Yang's rage boiled over as her Semblance kicked in, an explosion emanating from the very blonde herself, her hair beginning to glow, whispers of fire dancing across golden rivulets. She stormed forward, the vast majority of guards giving the now immolated girl a wide berth. One foolish attacker threw a sloppy punch and there was a snap as his arm impacted Yang's, the blonde's strength amplified so. She began making headway, the cloak of fire buying back the space she had lost to sheer numbers. Another punch, another kick, an expertly timed shoulder barge; he was running out of guards._

_Then it happened._

_The neck crack, the sadistic, sinister chuckle, the whistle as thin strips of studded leather flew through the air... The familiar searing sensation as a whip lashed across her back, tearing through her jacket and cutting into her tube top. She dropped to her knees with a deafening shriek._

_Lilac turned to red, flames licked across her skin, her hair faded from yellow to white and she let out a laugh of her own as pain turned to power. The brawler's head panned up, crimson orbs meeting the azure eyes of the girl she was fighting for, intending on giving her a confident smirk. What she saw however caused her grin to fade…_

Fear.

 _The poor girl was_ terrified _of Yang at that exact moment. The blonde froze, hearing that familiar whistle of a whip slicing through the air. She didn't fight back. It crashed across her spine and she howled in pain yet again, dropping back down to her knees as her breathing hitched. She strained to look up at the monster Yang refused be, she would not be someone else for that girl to fear. Her heart clenched up..._

They were gone.

_She'd failed to save her again..._

_The whip came crashing down once more._

* * *

Yang's eyes snapped open and the blonde sat up with a gasp before taking the time to recompose herself, her laboured breath evening out. Throwing off the sheets, she flung her legs over the side of her bed and brushed aside a couple of offending stray strands fluttering innocently before her eyes that she could not stop herself from fixating on. She let out a curse before pushing herself up, finally taking note of the sweat that drenched her mattress, and immediately thereafter remembering the usual routine and wiping away the solitary tear in her right eye.

"Pull yourself together, Yang," she chided herself gently. "It's been six years, how are you _still_ obsessing over this?" Her gaze turned to the alarm clock on her bedside table.

9:37pm

She had barely gotten more than half an hour's sleep…

"Fuck this…" she whispered.

Getting up, she sauntered out of her bedroom, idly pulling off her sweat stained clothing as she did so allowing the chilling night air to hit her exposed skin and cool her overheated body. Arriving in the main living space of her one bedroom apartment, Yang moved to the kitchenette before pouring herself a glass of cold water and leaning against the marble counter-top. She contented herself with gulping down the cold water in the dark before following the trail of her discarded garments back towards the bathroom.

Fifteen minutes later and Yang, having washed away the grime accumulated from her nightmare - if one could even call it that - was grabbing a white towel and wrapping it around her form.

Feeling somewhat refreshed, Yang returned to her bedroom, peeled away her damp sheets and reached for the spares she had grown accustomed to keeping within arm's reach. Before she could set about making her bed however, her scroll began to chime. It was an annoying, generic metronome that six years ago would have been replaced with something upbeat and most likely hers, like _I Burn_. Now she saw no point in doing so, even questioned why she found such a thing whimsical in the first place.

Answering the call, Yang immediately smiled. The girl who was calling her was one of few people Yang seemed to talk to these days: Her sister, Ruby Rose. "Oh, hey sis!" she greeted warmly with boisterousness she reserved only for those nearest and dearest to her. "What's up?"

"Umm, hey Yang, sorry to interrupt… whatever it is you do these days when I'm not around…" the voice replied, a hint of sadness infused within that matched perfectly with the small frown Yang gave. "But this is important."

Yang raised an eyebrow, both curious and unbelieving. "Contract?" she asked indifferently.

"Ya, big one."

The blonde sighed, contracts were hardly ever important and right now she was too tired to deal with any such job. "Ruby, couldn't this've waited 'til mornin'?"

"I figured I'd leave that up to you to decide." Ruby responded cryptically prompting Yang to pinch the bridge of her nose in frustration.

"Just tell me what this is about please, I'm not exactly in the best of moods right now…" she groaned.

"Weiss was kidnapped..."

Ruby could practically hear Yang's eyes snapping open. She most certainly heard the low chain of 'no's that poured from her lips.

"Lutolf wants us to bring her back…"

She received silence in response to that.

 _So Dick Schnee wants me to rescue his daughter? Oh, that's fucking rich…_ Yang sneered internally.

In spite of her venomous musings her free hand was already opening her drawers to grab her usual attire, attire she hadn't changed up since Beacon save switching out her tube top for a combat vest of identical aesthetic design. "I'll be right over Rubes." Yang informed her sister before hanging up and setting about getting ready.

* * *

"I'm sorry Pyrrha, but I have to do this!" Ruby shouted, her delicate voice infused with anger, defiance and resolution.

Velvet's gaze snapped over to the older redhead in the room, watching almost fearfully as Pyrrha's eyes widened for a split second before her facial features hardened. "I know you do Ruby, if not because it's your duty or the right thing to do then most definitely because of Yang. But does it have to be done now?" Pyrrha's voice softened as she glanced towards the ground. "You only just got back… Can't we at least spend _one_ day together before you rush off and leave me again?"

Velvet's gaze flitted back over to Ruby, wincing upon seeing the guilt in her eyes. Steeling herself for whatever consequences she may face for interrupting a lover's quarrel, she placed herself between the two, facing the Spartan. "Pyrrha, trust me, it has to be now. Just hear me out, okay?" She held her ground against Pyrrha's death glare, hoping her warm tone would appeal to the intimidating woman's typically gentle nature. However it appeared her better judgment was too clouded.

"It has to be now? It _has_ to be now!?" Pyrrha repeatedly shouted, a layer of aggression and sharpness in her voice mixed with disbelief and derision. The layer had been absent from the delicate and loving yet stern tone that she had been using to argue with her girlfriend. "Then tell us, Velvet. What actually is this mission? What is so important that The Networker would only come to Ruby and Yang mere nights removed from their last job? Why can't I spend a single night with the girl I love? Why does Ruby have to-"

"Because it was the White Fang that abducted Weiss Schnee last night…"

Pyrrha stopped in her tirade and, at that same moment, the door to Ruby and Pyrrha's apartment opened and a shocked blonde walked in slowly, a little unsure of what to say. She closed the apartment door and stalked forward slowly. "The… White Fang?" she choked out, a chain wrapping itself around her heart, threatening to crush it. The atmosphere plummeted as Ruby looked from her sister to the Networker's intermediary and then to her girlfriend. Pyrrha spared a momentary glance to Yang before nodding to Ruby.

"You have to do this…" she conceded but Ruby could tell from the way she trailed off that she still had doubts, doubts she aired without hesitation. " _If_ this information is correct..."

"It is!" Yang growled as she stomped forwards, joining her sister and two of the few people she'd call friends these days.

"The information's good," Velvet quickly offered softly in reassurance to the worried author. "This came in from Neptune, directly from the mouth of Lutolf himself. It's been double and triple checked. Weiss Schnee is being held for ransom by the White Fang."

Pyrrha let out a scoff, far from her usual behaviourisms, but this was far from an ordinary situation. "Excuse my doubts Velvet, but surely we'd have heard something, anything, before now if the sole remaining daughter of the Schnee family had actually been kidnapped." She spun on her heel to face the new arrival next, crossing her arms as she did so. "And you. Are you really going to potentially endanger your sister's life, _my girlfriend's_ life, for what may or may not even be a cause?"

"It's real, Pyrrha!" shouted Yang, stomping her foot again, a wave of fire flowing up her right leg from the point of impact. "And I am _not_ standing by and letting Weiss Schnee fall into the hands of the only monsters in this world that are worse than Lutolf himself!"

"Pyrrha..." Ruby called but was completely ignored by her girlfriend, whose tone grew furious, a truly rare occurrence of love and fear dominating reason and justice.

"So what, you're going to steal away the one thing I have left in this world and drag her down with you!?" Emerald and lilac locked and Pyrrha stepped forward bravely. "You're really going to risk your sister's life _again_ just so _you_ can chase another ghost of _your_ past!?"

Velvet took a cautious step back as Ruby flinched, her eyes trained hard on her lover caught between anger for going _there_ , fear for going _there_ and her usual adoration.

Yang's eyes closed momentarily as she released a low growl and surged forward, catching Pyrrha off-guard and slamming her into a wall.

"PYRRHA!" Ruby shrieked in concern and latched onto the left arm of her sister, the one bearing down upon Pyrrha's chest as the panicked redhead was crushed against the wall. An instant later and red flickered back to lilac and the blonde took several steps back, retreating into herself, shrinking in her presence.

"Shit Pyrrha. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm-I'm so, so sorry… I…"

Pyrrha coughed and pushed herself from the wall, shrugged away from her girlfriend's caring advancements and stormed straight past Yang. The blonde reached out cautiously as Pyrrha moved past her and offered another apology. "Save it for when you mean it…" she snapped back before continuing her journey to hers and Ruby's shared bedroom.

As she opened the door, she turned back to the trio of women, her voice suddenly back to its usual velvet quality with warm and loving undertones. "I'm going to bed… Do what you think you need to Ruby… I won't hold it against you if I don't see you tomorrow…"

With that, Pyrrha closed the door, leaving Ruby, Velvet and Yang alone. The latter just stared at her outstretched hand, the one that was roughly slamming Pyrrha against the wall mere moments prior. She looked over to Ruby but couldn't tear her gaze away from the redhead's bare feet. "I… don't know what to say… Shit Rubes, I fucked up. I'm…"

Taking a single bound forward, Ruby pulled her sister into a tender hug, tucking her elder sibling's head into the crane of her neck. "Shhh, it's okay, I know you didn't mean to. Nothing came of it, and I wouldn't hold it against you even if something did…" Her hand began to gently run through the golden mane she had once spent an entire month soaking with her own tears. "Pyrrha's okay. She's just… I don't know. Let me talk to her, okay?"

Pulling away, Yang wiped away the tears that had begun falling and nodded. Several long moments passed before she actually spoke. "…Does this mean you're not doing this with me?" she asked, not sure if she wanted to know the answer.

"Yang… we haven't done a mission apart from each other since Beacon. _Of course_ I'm doing this with you." Her sister reached a thumb up and gently wiped away a final tear that had pricked the corner of Yang's right eye before cupping her sister's cheeks in her palms and connecting their heads together. "I don't know if Weiss herself means anything to you. But I know how much it means to you to make sure she's happy and safe. We'll get her back, I promise. I just… need some time alone with Pyrrha, okay? I kind of promised her a second date, and then…"

Yang winced as she finished off the sentence in her head before offering a nervous, meek smile. "Shit, well… we'll just have to beat down the White Fang for that too now won't we?" she asked cheerfully earning a giggle from Ruby who gave her sister a quick kiss to the forehead and turned to the rabbit Faunus who was giving the girls their space.

"Keep her company Vel, I'll be right back." Removing her touch from her sister's cheek, Ruby gave her one last hug and kiss before moving over to the bedroom, stopping and whipping around lightning fast to face the blonde and brunette once more. "Oh and uh… help yourself to snacks and stuff!" she called out awkwardly yet with her usual bubbliness. "I'll be back soon!"

"Good luck…" Yang offered weakly as the door closed again.

* * *

She found Pyrrha lying flat on her stomach, face buried in a red pillow, Ruby's, who hadn't even slept on it once this month... Just from her posture, she could tell that there was no real tension in Pyrrha's frame nor pain after Yang's manhandling of her. She was just upset and wanted to be alone. With a sigh, Ruby moved over toward the bed, taking a seat on the end of it and reaching out to rub Pyrrha's shoulder with her right hand. "Does it hurt?"

Pyrrha craned her head to the right, glancing at Ruby from out the corner of her eyes, and offered a small smile. "No."

A surprisingly pleasant silence followed that exchange as relief washed over both parties. Before it threatened to take a turn, Ruby leant in and kissed her girlfriend's cheek before moving in further and planting a second one on the back of Pyrrha's neck. "She didn't mean to Pyrrha, it's just-"

"I know…" Pyrrha cut her off.

"Then you also know why she, why I, have to do this…"

Pyrrha thought for a moment before rolling over, taking Ruby's hand in hers and looking up, almost losing herself in Ruby's luminous moons. "Actually it means I know why she has to do this… And why she did _that_. And I know you have to do this too… but I can't actually see _why_ you have to do this…"

"Then I guess I won't ever expect you to," she replied with a shrug. "All I can really say is that I'm her sister and her hunting partner. I have to be there for her Pyrrha, especially when this could be the one mission she fails and doesn't bounce back from." Pyrrha's expression dropped noticeably, eyes drooping, lips curling into a frown, head lowering.

Ruby edged closer, squeezing the hand interlocked with hers tightly and kissing Pyrrha full on the lips; a kiss Pyrrha weakly returned. "And I've always been there by her side through each and every last moment of her… _thing_ with Weiss." There really wasn't any other way to describe it. A part of Ruby doubted that even Yang knew why she had obsessed this long over the heiress, that even she had the slightest idea of exactly what this whole _thing_ actually was…

"I already said I wouldn't hold it against you Ruby. You need to do what you think is right. If Weiss Schnee _is_ in danger then she needs help. I'll miss you but I survived the last few weeks alone. I can survive a little while longer…"

Tenderly, Ruby's fingers made contact with Pyrrha's skin, dancing across her cheek and brushing crimson curls behind one ear. Her thumb swiped across her cheekbone in a soft caress. "Whatever the White Fang is planning Pyrrha, it's gotta be big. And yeah, I want to help my sister. So this is the right thing to do in my mind. Besides, we mightn't even leave Atlas, so you may not actually be alone. I could just be… really fucking busy." Slowly Ruby's lips met Pyrrha's one more time, a kiss returned with more fervour this time around by the twenty-three year old. "I love you. I'm sorry."

"Don't be. I love you too." Pyrrha pulled her back in for another kiss before releasing her, Ruby pulling away with a half-smile. "Be safe."

"You say that like I'm leaving right now." Pyrrha gave a questioning brow raise, a toothy grin from Ruby earning a small smile and causing a small swell of warmth, butterflies and happiness in Pyrrha. Ruby shifted around, settling in front of her and pulling her swiftly into her embrace. Pyrrha snuggled into Ruby's bust and felt fingers thread through her hair as a gentle lullaby being hummed by her paramour caused her eyelids to flutter shut.

"I won't be here in the morning… and I'm sorry for that…" Ruby whispered, unfortunately breaking the soothing metronome to do so. "But I'm here for now. And I'm gonna be back as often as I can." She returned to her melody, Pyrrha slowly drifting off. When she felt Pyrrha's lips part, brushing against her chest, Ruby blushed, extricated herself gently, brushed aside yet more wild bangs and gave one final parting kiss. "Goodnight my little ember…"

* * *

Leaving the bedroom, Ruby made her way back over towards the settee where Yang was fiddling, undoubtedly out of nerves and restlessness. She stood the second she caught a glimpse of Ruby's red blouse. "So?"

"Pyrrha's fine, you know she's not the type to hold a grudge," Ruby reassured as she made her way to grab a pair of socks and some steel toe capped hiking shoes and slipped them on. "She's asleep and knows and accepts that I'm doing this… Now come on. Velvet, get Neptune to give us his location. Yang, we're paying Lutolf a visit."

"You're really expecting an audience with him?" Velvet questioned derisively.

"If he wants us to find and bring back his daughter I do…" she replied confidently and opened the door, throwing a leather jacket over to Yang which the blonde caught with ease. "And relax Yang; we're bringing her back regardless, but Pyrrha's concerns do have me curious…"

Yang nodded and stalked outside, waltzing by her sibling while giving a nonchalant "You and me both sis…" and continuing onwards to the stairs.

Seeing her sister leave, Ruby turned to Velvet. "Please make sure we get Neptune's coordinates, Vel. And please _please_ tell Pyrrha in the morning that we _at least_ double checked the information personally before rushing in."

Whilst hearing trepidation from Ruby, Yang and Pyrrha about trusting the word of her boss - their friend - was irksome, Velvet couldn't help but agree. What mattered right now was Weiss getting back to Castle White safely and Pyrrha's psychological and emotional well-being. It wasn't her place to challenge such doubt in her partner's abilities. But it could be her place to allay the doubts in Pyrrha's mind, at least until her job beckoned her back to the Velveteen Tavern.

* * *

For Yang, the journey across the snow metropolis known as Atlas was both too quick and not quick enough.

On the one hand, she relished the feeling of having someone's arms tightening around her stomach and holding her close, and of having another's body pressing against her back. They were sensations she'd only ever feel with Ruby, the blonde's self-destructive behaviour often pushing away others or making it so people didn't even try getting close to her in the first place.

On the other, Yang was desperate to get this done. The quicker she quizzed Lutolf, the quicker she could get to searching for Weiss. The quicker she began searching for Weiss, the quicker she could find and rescue her. And the quicker she rescued her, the quicker the poor girl's hell would be over. Of course the thought did occur to Yang that she'd only be taking Weiss out of the fire and putting her back into the frying pan…

For Ruby, things were significantly more mundane. She merely clung to her speedster of a sister as the two barreled down snow-laden road after snow-laden road, paying no mind to the boring scenery that blurred by.

For the most part, Ruby enjoyed the thrill of the ride. Somebody had to now that Yang no longer seemed to. However her attention did sporadically flicker back to her girlfriend curled up all alone in bed. She kept squashing the guilt and regret by reminding herself that she'd be back there with her sooner rather than later but somehow, someway, it always managed to creep back up on her.

"Left here!" Ruby instructed.

"I know." Yang acknowledged and sharply took the corner, briefly smiling as Ruby squeezed tighter.

Neptune had sent them his coordinates without hesitation, so sure that the girls were trustworthy after over half a decade of friendship, or acquaintance as was the case with Yang. He hadn't even asked his charge for permission. If the President of the SDC didn't want them seeing him then they wouldn't even get into the hospital. And if he entrusted Weiss to Ruby and Yang, _only_ to Ruby and Yang, then Neptune reasoned he'd entrust his location to them as well.

Twenty more minutes later and Bumblebee came to a screeching halt outside of some steel gates and two armed-to-the-teeth soldiers, each flanked by a pair of Atlesian Knights, greeted Ruby and Yang. The sisters couldn't help but note how paranoid Lutolf must have really been to have believed he'd also need one of the best active Mistrali hunters alive today to keep him safe. Though it did also raise questions about how Weiss was so easily captured.

 _Minimal guard detail would minimise conspicuousness of a Schnee car travelling. Maybe Lutolf was hoping Weiss' venture out of Castle White was a better kept secret?_ Yang evaluated internally before pulling off her helmet and seeing the flash of recognition in the soldier's eyes.

"Ruby Rose, Yang Xiao Long. Your reputations precede you both though that does not explain your presences here."

Climbing off of Bumblebee and removing her helmet, Ruby gave a formal salute, not that such a gesture was mandatory or even expected. In contrast Yang merely shut off the engine of her precious motorcycle and let her body relax slightly leaving her sister to do the talking.

"We are here to request an audience with Lord Schnee, President of the Schnee Dust Company."

Yang allowed herself to show an amused smile. Twenty-one year old and yet, despite their traumatic shared past, despite the eye-opening trials of Beacon Academy, despite everything that jaded Yang herself, and despite Pyrrha's current situation, Ruby was _still_ the adorable, cheerful and puerile girl she had always been. In fact it seemed that, no matter how hard the world tried to bring her sister down, she would always keep on being her just to spite it all.

"Lord?" the guard asked and Yang bit her lip. "Oh, whatever... What business do you have with 'Lord' Schnee?"

"Classified," Ruby spoke with a perfectly straight face and Yang let out a snort as she suppressed her laugh, which earned a pair of furrowed brows being shot in her direction.

"Well I'm sorry Ms. Rose but 'classified' doesn't cut it." He stepped forward, hand rising to brace against the fore grip of the shotgun he pulled from his back. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

Yang chose now as a good time to intervene. Ruby's shtick, whilst entertaining to Yang, wasn't actually shtick to Ruby herself. She was actually being entirely serious. Unfortunately, most people didn't know that. "Look, just call up Neptune Vasilias. He'll get you all the permission you need."

She ignored the glower she got in response and soon enough the leading guard grunted in resignation and contacted the huntsman in question. One conversation, a visit to reception, and a short walk later, and Ruby and Yang found themselves standing inside Lutolf's room. Neptune was standing by Lutolf's bedside and Ruby remained in step with Yang, hand offered to the blonde as said girl glared down at the broken remnants of the once almighty president. He looked back up at them with a mix of desperation and disdain.

"So tell me… Why are you two here and not out searching for my daughter?"


	4. Burn

_Oh how the mighty have fallen,_ sneered Yang internally as she entered the hospital room, eyes immediately falling upon the bedridden form of the devil himself, Lutolf Schnee. Her expression soured to a glower of hatred when he turned to meet her gaze. Despite his fragility, Yang could still see the disdain he held for her, though it wasn't as if he was trying to disguise it in the first place…

"So," he spoke, gravitas and contempt failing to seep into his tone. "Tell me… Why are you two here and not out searching for my daughter?" Yang had to blink to hide the transient red hue her eyes took. Ruby was the one to reply.

"We intend to. We just figured it'd be best to make sure it really was you, y'know?"

The vacant stare Lutolf fixed Ruby served as compelling enough evidence that, no, Lutolf did not know. The silence would've been cloying had it not been broken up by an indignant huff from the blue haired defender to their left.

"Oh get over yourself, Neptune. You can't blame us for being careful; that could've been anyone using your name and you know it…" Yang retorted in a no-nonsense manner. The usually talkative Neptune grunted again in response and folded his arms. Yang's eyebrow rose. "So you finally started doing the whipping yourself, huh Lutolf?"

The irritated growl she got from the Schnee patriarch was the victory Yang was after. Hearing Neptune retort however put her in a rare state of secret amusement. "Come on, you think someone as masculine as me would ever be a sub in the bedroom?" Dropping his arms back to his side he focussed on the matter at hand, knowing better than to linger too long in immaturity when talking to someone like the SDC's president. "So, what do you wanna ask him?" enquired Neptune.

Glancing at the huntsman from the corner of his eyes, Lutolf tried to reprimand and insult him. "I can speak for myself, boy _..._ " he spoke absent the authority or venom he had been hoping for before looking back to Yang. "So, what do you believe so important and falsified that you would waste your precious time with me?"

Try as Yang had, she could not hate his attitude. It would seem he shared her desperation and anxiety about the current situation. But they needed answers. There were too many holes to rush off in blind, naïve foolishness. Too much Yang wasn't willing to risk. "Ruby…" she called spotlighting her sister, something the redhead had grown used to by now. She stepped forward, head held high, and cleared her throat.

"Well, it seems pretty obvious that the contract is real." The condescending hum of confirmation didn't deter her. "But there's still so much we need to know. Like what route was Weiss journeying down when The White Fang attacked? What are the White Fang after? Why _specifically_ us?" Ruby prayed Lutolf would answer that last question. Shifting around in his bed, the weak alpha male tried to find at least some measure of his former, more imposing, self before speaking.

"The route is of no consequence to you," he begun. "As for the White Fang, those picaro knaves have proven themselves foolish enough to give me an ultimatum: my company... or my daughter." Yang glanced down to her feet, deep in thought. The White Fang truly had him by the throat. "I refuse to let them take away my last remaining family, and yet to hand over the deeds to the company…"

"Is something that we just cannot afford to let come to pass. We can't trust a White Fang that has access to that much Dust, money and weaponry. And the SDC still controls more than their fair share of Atlesian mechs," Yang argued, mainly to herself before re-iterating the only question that mattered to her: "So… why us?"

A pregnant pause followed as Lutolf considered his words. Never before had he so much as given the impression of care or concern or desperation. Not once since the Faunus had snatched his darling daughter Winter away from him had he ever shown fondness of any one person or thing, not even Weiss. Finally his eyes closed and he exhaled softly.

"Ever since my daughter's death, I've only ever seen Weiss frown. She's constantly hurting, constantly hating, always fearful, and always lonely. And it's _entirely_ my fault." Lutolf bowed his head shamefully. His next words were delivered sluggishly, the man doing all in his power to hide his emotions, ensuring not a single word was fumbled or a single breath caught. "I've not once managed to make her smile since that day I took her dream away from her. But you, Yang Xiao Long, in just a few short hours you had her _laughing_. I'd forgotten what it sounded like…"

Neptune appeared to quietly pity him, his neck finally craning so he could take in his employer's ailing form. Ruby was more conflicted. On the one hand Lutolf sounded sincerely sorrowful and regretful and yet, on the other… What he did to Weiss and Yang on that day, what he had undoubtedly continued to do to Weiss for years since, was not something you could justify nor forgive.

Yang held no such confliction, the red hue she had managed to hide before was back, burning a hole in the man who was asking, no, _pleading_ , for her help. Her hands clenched into fists and Lutolf watched on as the blonde's arms trembled. "I never…" she finally spat through gritted teeth, raw emotions radiating from those two words. Disgust, hate, fury, sorrow, all of it appeared to be on the verge of erupting in a maelstrom of truth… that was until Lutolf muttered two words of his own.

"I know."

Yang's jaw dropped. Red gave way to lilac. Her hands unclenched. Shoulders she never knew were hunched relaxed. And yet her teeth remained gritted and eyes remained narrowed. "Keep talking."

He couldn't meet her gaze. Be that out of fear, shame, pride, he honestly couldn't say, but for the first time in his life, Lutolf couldn't look somebody in the eye. "You care more about Weiss than I ever have. And you brought her more happiness in a few hours than I have in twenty-two years. Ms Xiao Long, if there is one woman left in this world that I can trust to keep my daughter safe, it's you."

Her teeth finally stopping grinding together at the unexpected words and genuine trust and praise. Her opinion of Lutolf had not changed, but she could not, would not, judge him right now. For Lutolf, pride was gone; his walls were down. His next words were the first and last beg he'd ever let other people hear. "That is why I am asking you and your sister to save my daughter." His eyes suddenly screwed shut, desperately trying to seal away the tears trying to flow. His lip quivered, defiant of his own desires, and his breath hitched. "Please, Yang," he pleaded. "Don't let the White Fang take her away too…"

A tear slipped out of the corner of his right eyes, a second from his left. The warm trail they left as they ran down his cheeks gave Lutolf a sense of humiliation and shame. The totality of his existence had become hiding his weakness. The drinking, the shouting, the beating; all acts of futility… as had been the forced reclusion of his daughter…

Maybe if he had just let her attend Beacon none of this would have happened.

"I told Pyrrha we needed to do this." Ruby finally chimed in. Yang nodded in agreement.

"Focus on staying alive, Lut-Mr Schnee. I'm bringing Weiss back, I promise. And when I do, you're gonna be the father she always deserved. Got it?" Not trusting himself to speak, nor wanting to actually bend to such a demand, Lutolf remained silent. Disappointment flashed across Yang's features and she turned away. "I see. Come on Rubes…"

The sister in question also chose to remain silent as she watched Yang walk away, each step bringing the brawler closer and closer to the door. "Do you think I'm a monster, Yang Xiao Long?"

Yang stopped, arm outstretched, door knob in hand. She kicked the ground before opening it and spoke without glancing back. "I don't think so, Lutolf. I know so. But you weren't always a monster; you just became one because you stupidly believed you needed to in order to survive. But that doesn't make what you've done right. Regret for your crimes doesn't make them disappear, and I know for a fact that you will continue to commit them if you're still alive when I bring her back. A person regrets that which they couldn't change. A monster refuses to change despite their regrets. So yes, you _are_ a monster."

Silence greeted her in response and Yang took a step across the threshold, placing herself outside of the ward room. A groan caught her attention and she finally looked back. Lutolf was shaking and Neptune quickly braced a hand against the older man's back as he sat up. "And which one are you, Yang Xiao Long?" he choked out.

"My only regret Lutolf," she retorting back without hesitation. "Is that even after I save Weiss, I'll still have failed at truly saving her."

Her piece said Yang marched down the corridor leaving Lutolf in her dust with one task in mind: She'd bring Weiss home.

* * *

Six hours had passed by since Blake had last left her. She actually missed the Faunus. If nothing else, she was better company than the sorrow and dread that washed over her whenever she was alone, and for some reason Weiss felt safer with Blake's eyes upon her then she did absent them. Maybe it was because every word Blake had ever spoken always seemed tinted with reassurance and delivered a soothing tone. It was almost as if Blake didn't want to see Weiss miserable…

" _You keep telling yourself that, Heiress."_

Those were the last words Blake had spoken to her. A part of Weiss desperately wished to know whether the Faunus had spoken out of arrogance or disbelief. Was Blake just so confident in the scheme the White Fang had meticulously planned out? Or was Blake trying to tell her something, trying to ease and reassure her?

_Ridiculous! The White Fang loathes my family. Why would Blake believe me the exception to his mistreatment? And why would she bother convincing me, despite everything he's done to me, that he cares? What would she have to gain? She's playing me. This is a game to her!_

The squeak of the heavy door, the sole way in or out of her room, opening snapped Weiss out of her thoughts. She immediately looked towards it, frowning upon seeing the male enter. He walked over to her, plate in hand and crouched before her, coming eye to eye with the heiress whom glared back. "Clock's ticking heiress, still no reply from your father. I told them, I told them and they didn't listen to me: Lutolf loves power, _not_ family, _power_. It's what separates us from him. All the crimes we commit? They're for those around us, our brothers and sisters. The crimes your father commits? They're for him, his wealth and stat-"

"And why are you telling me this?" Weiss intercepted bravely, cutting off the bull Faunus mid-speech. "I told Blake the _exact_ same thing. My father…" Weiss' body suddenly slumped, her face contorting into one of pain. She knew this would happen. She knew he'd leave her for dead... So why did her world just shatter? "My father…"

"I just wanted to remind you that, without your father's cooperation, we may be forced to... follow through with our threats..." Adam stated bluntly hoping to reap some satisfaction from the heiress' strife. Irksomely however, Weiss remained strong.

"Why am I not surprised that all you White Fang think about is murder and retribution? Where the hell is your conviction? Your vindication?" she spat back. If he weren't wearing a mask, she'd see his eyes narrow. She still saw his jaw lock. "You claim righteousness and yet here you are, imprisoning a girl you know nothing about in a transparent play for power. And then what?" A low growl escaped Adam, she continued pushing. "Equality? I doubt it. No, I think you're just going to prove to the world what savages you all are. You're going to prove yourselves twisted psychopaths!"

Adam suddenly stood up, bearing down intimidatingly upon the helpless Weiss. The heiress gulped as she looked up at him, restrained to kneeling at best by the collar around her neck attached to the wall. "Careful princess, I'm not as nice as Blake pretends to be..."

Despite her fear, Weiss gave a single bitter chuckle. "Then somehow you're a worse soldier than you are a person…"

Like a rabid dog snapped free from his chain, Adam lunged forwards, one hand balling into Weiss' hair, his other gripping her jaw with bruising force. Weiss gasped, the last of her confidence disappearing as dread seeped in. She tried to struggle but the ache behind her skull made the attempts amount to nothing and soon she was just staring up at her masked captor, her façade shattered once again showing the scared, helpless little girl beneath.

Unlike Blake, Adam didn't care and, with a smirk, raised a fist into the air, releasing the mess of ivory tresses in the process. Weiss winced, screwed her eyes shut and waited for her punishment to come. Rather than feeling pain however, she heard a groan. Daring to open her eyes, Weiss found herself gazing at a restrained Adam, one of Blake's arms locked around his throat, its wrist being grasped by her spare hand that wrenched it back, tightening the vice.

Stepping backwards, Blake pulled Adam away from Weiss, the bull Faunus following her movements. Once she was far enough away, Blake released him, darted round to his front and pushed him into the wall, Adam not even grunting at the force but his hand rising to massage his neck.

"Just what do you think you're doing Adam!?" she growled, placing herself between the princess and her partner, lip curled, nostrils flared, eyes burning with anger. Adam merely let out a cough and smoothed out his clothing.

"Just having a little fun, and shutting the princess' mouth in the process..." he replied.

"Your 'fun' is endangering the mission... and myself given that Weiss is _my_ prisoner." she shot back. "Now leave before The Triumvirate hears about this."

The way his jaw clenched, it was clear he had issues following orders from the girl but nevertheless he relented, shoulders dropping in defeat. Even with Adam's mask, Weiss could tell he had given her a look of disdain right then and there before he took his leave.

Blake kept her guard up for several moments after Adam had left before she exhaled and whipped round to face Weiss, rough fingers delicately brushing against soft skin as Blake moved Weiss' head, getting a clear look at the red marks blotting her otherwise flawless neck and jawlines.

"Sometimes it seems as if that idiot just wants to watch the world burn…" Blake muttered as she thumbed the last blotch, fingertips brushing the gauze pad fixed in place against Weiss' temple. "Did he hit you?" Despite Weiss' negative Blake still peeled away the gauze pad, Weiss hissing at the minor twinge of pain. Cleaning the blood, Blake noted the wound was healing as expected and re-covered it. "Doesn't look like Adam managed to do any damage, you'll be fine."

The fear Weiss had been feeling moments prior had been numbed, now little more than steady unease in the presence of the Faunus girl. She bit her lip. She had to ask. Mustering up the courage, Weiss took a breath and spoke. "Tell me… Why do you care so much that I'm okay?"

Blake's response was immediate. "I already said I don't. My leaders do however. And I'd rather not find out exactly what it feels like when you fail them…" Giving the heiress another once over, Blake stood back up. "You gonna be okay?" she asked sincerely and Weiss nodded.

"I'll be fine enough. Just keep that Neanderthal of a partner of yours as far away from me as possible…"

"I can try, but as his shadow I do most of the work," Blake explained vaguely. She cast a glance at the plate Adam had left on the floor, the meal prepared specifically to keep Weiss healthy. "At least he made you the food I told him to…" Extending her leg, Blake nudged the plate with her foot, edging it closer and closer to the heiress. "Eat up. And shout if you need anything."

Weiss' attention turned to the plate of food, a respectable portion of chicken and fries, Blake really was taking care of her. Hearing no response, Blake turned tail and headed towards the exit. Weiss let her for a while, reaching out to grab the fork. Blake was by the door when Weiss spoke up, the heiress suddenly remembering who had actually prepared the meal even if Blake had ordered it. "You really expect me to trust anything Adam cooks?"

Still facing away from Weiss, Blake rolled her eyes. Returning to the heiress with a naturally sensual strut, she bent over, grasped Weiss' hand, uncurled Weiss' fingers from the fork in her possession and speared some chicken then a few fries. Raising the fork, Blake popped the food into her mouth and Weiss watched as it travelled down her gullet.

"Trust it now?" Blake asked as she placed the fork back onto the plate to which the heiress relented, reluctantly taking the fork and digging in. Taking her leave once again, Blake was stopped a second time by her prisoner's voice.

"Actually… could you stay and talk for a while?" she asked and Blake's brow scrunched, prompting the girl to elaborate. "It's… difficult… to not get lost in thought when I'm alone…"

Blake could sympathise, of course that was actually why she actively sought solitude. "Even if I wanted to, heiress, I couldn't. Duty calls." Finally opening the door, Blake turned away from the girl. "Enjoy your meal."

"Could I at least have a book then?"

Blake paused one final time. "…I _might_ be able to find something." And with that, she was gone, and Weiss immediately fell back to her thoughts. Her father was a prime subject…

* * *

"Adam!" Blake called out as she made her way through the impressively large house that she and her partner lived in, the living area her target destination. Down the hallway she went, bare feet on the shaggy carpet that tickled her soles as she walked.

After her shower she had donned the basics, a simple white undershirt and matching white shorts. The coattails, stockings, armbands and ribbons that typically complimented the outfit felt unnecessary and, besides, she'd heard a few of the words Adam had spat at Weiss and had to quickly dress before the situation escalated.

Moving downstairs she pushed open the door, grabbed the scroll on the coffee table and called up Ivan, Okami and Salem. The trio quickly appeared on the small screen and were soon linked up with the big screen serving as Adam and Blake's television. Taking a seat on the couch, curling her feet up to meet her thighs, she greeted the Triumvirate being joined by Adam a minute later who took the seat next to her.

"So, has Lutolf responded yet?" asked Adam, cutting straight to the point. Something Blake approved of. Okami ran a hand through her hair, a rare displacement of her usually controlled self and Blake glanced down.

"He has not," Okami stated regretfully. "At least not directly…"

Knowing diplomacy wasn't the wolf Faunus' forte, Adam turned his attention to the male members, specifically Salem who usually served as brain and speaker. "And what's that supposed to mean?"

* * *

Ruby's eyes narrowed on the crowd of underground ruffians before her, petty crooks looking to blow off steam, petty crooks whose fun she had just interrupted and who had been stupid enough to draw weapons on her. Her right hand arced inwards towards her left hip, bringing her trusty scythe to rest beneath her left arm, finger on the trigger.

A brief glint of recognition appeared to be in most of the crooks' eyes, a few being allowed to flee right past. She didn't care for hurting the patrons here. She only cared about the guy right at the back, the owner of the club, the man behind this underground street fighting arena. Presently he held a simple broadsword and, judging from his shaking, Ruby assumed he wasn't much of a fighter. Those still in the crowd held similarly conventional weapons.

The security charged forwards and, with them, a collection of foolish lesser thugs. Ruby pulled the trigger, the recoil of her scythe propelling her forwards. She rotated her wrist, Crescent Rose tilting in her grasp. A soft pulse of Aura caused her second sweetheart's blade to retract, her weapon now taking the form of a more traditional war scythe. Transformation finished, Ruby swung her weapon, a horizontal sweep smashing through the crowd toppling a dozen or so patrons.

Her feet barely touched the ground before she activated her Semblance and took off in the direction from which she came. Her speed rocketed exponentially and a great wind whipped up around her as she disappeared back into the crowd. Swept off their feet immediately, a large number of patrons found themselves flailing helplessly through the air, caught in the hurricane caused by the young prodigy and seconds later felt the unwelcome feel of concrete as they were carelessly slammed into the northern wall.

Her attack complete, Ruby came to a stop, giving the remaining fighters the opportunity to reconsider their decision to fight rather than flee. As expected, the remaining patrons turned tail and ran. All that remained was the club manager, currently backing himself in a corner, sword already dropped, and four members of his security force. The four ran forwards.

Readying Crescent Rose, Ruby pulled the trigger once more; this time using the force of the shot to power her through a pirouette. The blade of her scythe re-extended mid-spin, the full reaper blade crashing against the sword the first bouncer had managed to block with. Though it protected him from being dissected, the man still felt himself being launched off his feet by the force of the blow.

One down and Ruby pulled the trigger again, inverting her momentum and dropping to a crouch to avoid the axe being swung at her neck. The back of the scythe caught the back of the man's leg lacerating his calf and tripping him up. Two down.

Back to a stable base and Ruby back stepped to avoid the next attack before bringing up Crescent Rose to defend against another. The final two guards were double teaming her. The flurry of blows Ruby had to block before she found her opening didn't last long; despite attacking together the bouncers were absent synergy or synchronicity. When one attacked it actually took a second before the other would follow up.

Deflecting one blow with the snath of Crescent Rose, Ruby activated her Semblance once again leaving her second opponent to slice through an innocent collection of rose petals.

Before her disappearance had even registered Ruby appeared to re-materialise several feet to the left of the duo. With one final trigger pull, Ruby swung her weapon one last time, the tang crashing into the ribs of the first bouncer, knocking the first into the second and promptly sending both airborne for a few moments before they joined everybody else in dreamland on the floor.

Not even heavy of breath, Ruby turned her attention to the manager, still cowering in his own little corner, now trembling after seeing the absolute domination of his bouncers and his patrons alike.

Ruby held no pity for him. The only people who were that scared of a huntress on sight were the people who had sinned enough to be considered too big a threat to society to be allowed freedom. One step forwards proved enough to make the man quickly bolt towards the exit with laboured breath and scared gasps. Ruby let him go. After all, he wouldn't get far.

As he reached the door two explosions by it caused him to staggered backwards and fall to the ground. Moments later the source of the damage walked in. Blonde hair, yellow vest, brown jacket and skirt, black shorts, brown boots; Yang Xiao Long stalked over to the man who backed up fearfully.

Ember Celica's left gauntlet deactivated, returning to bracelet form and the man felt a hand wrap around his throat, squeezing as the blonde brawler effortlessly hoisted him from the ground and slammed him back-first into the nearest wall. She reared back her right arm, hand clenched into a fist and Ember Celica's right gauntlet still activated.

"Tell me everything you know about the White Fang. Now!" she demanded, her eyes a deep crimson.

"I-I don't know anything. Please you have to believe me, I'd never work with the White Fang!" he choked out as Yang loosened her grip. Not impressed and entirely unbelieving, Yang pulled back her left hand before slamming him back against the wall.

"Bullshit. The last guy I knew like you was in the White Fang's back pocket. Your network and their network are both too big to have never crossed before. Now spill."

Ruby merely watched on, Crescent Rose now fixed in place across the small of her back. The guy practically whimpered, in fear and in pain. "I swear to God, I've never seen or spoke to them before. I'm a goddamn human for crying out loud!"

Another thud resounded as he was yet again roughly smashed against the wall. "So was he…" Yang spat.

"And? I'm _not fucking him_ you crazy bimbo!"

Releasing a growl, Yang's right hand clenched tighter, fingernails pressing into the black leather of her gloves. Closing her eyes, Yang let her hand fall for a second before pulling it back and throwing it forwards, Ember Celica quickly deactivated and her bare first met the man's ribs earning a scream.

Yang's eyes re-opening revealed calm lilac and, with it, her hand released the throat it had been squeezing moments prior, the man keeling over, coughing and wheezing. Her right hand relaxed and dropped back down her side, the man collapsing to the floor, and she turned to face Ruby.

"Let's go. There's nothing for us here…" Ruby bit her lip, waiting for the calm to pass. "FUCK!" And there was the storm. "Yet another dead-end, goddammit, how has _no one_ got any information on the White Fang!?" Glancing back down at the manager, Yang snarled. "Still calling bullshit on you by the way…"

Understanding her partner and sister's frustration, Ruby stepped forward almost sheepishly, nervously itching her bare shoulder. "Come on sis, just calm down. It's only been a couple of hours. We could still find a lead before night falls."

Yang's gaze dropped to the ground as she let out an exhausted sigh. "Maybe you're right… It's just so frustrating, you know?"

Taking another step forward, Ruby placed a comforting arm on her sister's shoulder. "I know. And I can only imagine its worse for you right now… But you can't let our search for the White Fang do to you what it to _him_. Don't let it control you. And certainly don't let it escalate further than, well…" Ruby gestured to the still groaning man behind her sister. "Him…"

Taking a second to take in the man's form, Yang nodded. She didn't regret her actions or sympathise with the man, but she didn't want to become a helpless slave to her rage like her old friend had. "Come on, let's go. That lead isn't going to come to us."

Ruby nodded and the two turned to leave only to see a new arrival walk through the door. "Actually…" she spoke as they took in her figure; tall, blonde hair, green eyes, bespectacled, black skirt, white blouse, black and purple cape. Their jaws dropped. Glynda Goodwitch had disappeared after the Beacon Infiltration Incident in their second year. "A lead of mine could be of use to you, since we're all after the White Fang…"

Yang smiled, Ruby laughed. "Or y'know, it will..." the younger sister joked before turning to face their old teacher. "Lead the way."


End file.
